0:00

Thanks for listening

0:02

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0:05

Kill from 48

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hours. Listen on

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play the podcast,

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Train to Kill,

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Amazon Music.

0:29

All I knew was that he

0:31

was in real estate. David was

0:34

nice. Very charming. Easy to get

0:36

along with. We've always had a

0:38

good time. He had a lot

0:41

of ambition, a lot of good

0:43

ideas. David is the kind

0:45

of person that makes people

0:48

feel good. He could sell you

0:50

just about anything. He could

0:52

sell a screen daughter to

0:54

a submarine. It's just how he

0:57

was. Tracy

0:59

was the new girlfriend. She

1:02

really wanted to take over.

1:04

She was going to be

1:06

in charge. That was her

1:09

mode of operation. Donna, she

1:11

was his ex-wife. It was

1:13

weird. I liked him and

1:16

his personality if he had

1:18

a son. That didn't matter

1:21

to me. Tracy was

1:23

nice. Just about everything

1:25

was good at the beginning.

1:28

David owed everybody

1:30

money. Very

1:32

paranoid. Taped

1:35

everything. Crossitudes,

1:37

call girls.

1:39

David left

1:41

with cash. He had

1:44

$25,000 with him. This

1:46

was a pretty brutal

1:49

crime. Just cold,

1:52

calculated murder.

1:55

He was shot and

1:57

burned. He had been wrapped in

1:59

what appeared to be in electric

2:01

blanket and then outside of

2:03

that was what appeared to

2:06

be a blue plastic

2:08

tart. If you're going

2:10

to kill somebody you would

2:13

do it for a reason.

2:15

David and Donna didn't get

2:18

along. She had a

2:20

million reasons. Donna has

2:22

gained everything. She

2:25

wanted the house. What happened

2:27

to me? And who won't you?

2:29

Why'd you ask him? Tracy

2:31

was the only one who

2:34

had anything against the roof.

2:36

Somebody's lying. If I wasn't

2:38

walking in my shoes, I

2:40

wouldn't believe somebody telling me

2:43

the story. Secrets and

2:45

Lies on Grapevine Lake.

3:09

It was the middle of the

3:12

night when forensic death investigator

3:14

John Briggs got the call

3:16

to report to the scene

3:18

of a homicide. As soon

3:20

as you get out of

3:22

the vehicle, you can smell

3:24

a burning odor. The body

3:27

was wrapped in several items

3:29

that had burned during the

3:31

fire, but were not totally

3:34

consumed. There was the

3:36

remains of a blue

3:38

plastic camping. Then around

3:40

all that was rope. The body

3:42

was still smoldering as Riggs carefully

3:44

rolled it over hoping to identify

3:46

the victim. I could not even

3:48

tell if it was a male

3:50

or a female, but based upon

3:52

the face I knew it was

3:54

a Caucasian person. When police first

3:56

arrived at this crime scene in

3:58

Grand Prairie Tech... in April of

4:00

2002, the intense heat from the

4:03

fire had damaged the body to

4:05

such a degree that crime scene

4:07

investigators had to spend hours delicately

4:09

recovering the remains. The police found

4:11

tire tracks and some fiber materials,

4:13

but little else by way of

4:15

evidence. The medical examiner determined the

4:17

victim was a man in his

4:20

40s, killed by a single gunshot

4:22

wounds of the heart, but his

4:24

identity was a mystery. Dental

4:28

records would later

4:30

confirm the victim

4:32

as 40-year-old David

4:34

Nixon. A successful

4:36

realtor from nearby

4:38

Grapevine, Texas. I

4:40

knew the second he never called

4:43

me back. Because he would

4:45

never not call me

4:47

back. I knew something

4:49

that happened. 14-year-old Nicholas

4:52

is David Nixon's

4:54

son. Where

4:56

was this? Cobble? I was

4:58

deep sea fishing. This is in

5:00

steamboat with snow a meal. He

5:02

had a great smile on your

5:05

dad. He idolized his father, a

5:07

bear of a man, at

5:09

six four, two hundred

5:11

and forty pounds. Trustworthy,

5:13

dependable, protective. Anybody who knew

5:16

that he would do just

5:18

about anything for anybody.

5:20

Everyone knew him well, just

5:23

talked about how much he loved

5:25

you. He was always

5:27

bragging about something

5:30

I did. Nicholas's

5:32

mother, Donnellella, is

5:35

David Nixon's first wife.

5:37

They married in 1990.

5:40

Years later, she still

5:42

has fond memories.

5:44

Charming, vivacious, and

5:47

full of life. And

5:49

you never know what

5:51

you're going to get.

5:54

Love surprises.

5:56

Love surprises.

6:00

was born the following year.

6:02

Anything for Nicholas. Crazy

6:04

about him. David soon found

6:06

success selling real estate,

6:09

becoming a top agent,

6:11

eventually brokering million-dollar deals

6:13

on high-end properties in

6:16

the affluent suburbs north

6:18

of Dallas. He hardly ever

6:20

slept. It was bigger, better,

6:23

faster. It was always a race. It

6:25

was always about competition.

6:28

Their marriage ended badly

6:30

in 1995, after David

6:33

had an affair with

6:35

flight attendant Lisa Hill.

6:37

They married and divorced

6:40

within two years. But

6:42

David wasn't single for

6:44

long. Before his divorce

6:47

was final, he met

6:49

another woman, an attractive

6:52

27-year-old accountant named Tracy

6:54

Frame. It was nice,

6:57

very charming, easy to get along

6:59

with, very smooth. I wasn't interested

7:02

in dating right then, but he

7:04

was pretty persistent. And

7:07

convincing. So... David and

7:09

Tracy soon started living

7:11

together in this house

7:13

in Greyfine. They lived

7:15

extravagantly, often taking ocean

7:17

cruises together. The trips

7:20

were amazing. Did you have a

7:22

taste for the finer things

7:24

in life? Absolutely. He always

7:26

wanted to have the best

7:28

of the best. Drive a

7:30

Lexus, drive a Mercedes.

7:32

They live beyond his means?

7:35

Yes. At home, David and

7:37

Tracy were fixtures in the

7:39

social scene at Great Fine

7:41

Lake. I knew everybody out there

7:44

and he, you know, it was,

7:46

it was great. That lake was

7:48

a peaten place. I'm telling

7:50

you right now. It

7:53

was amazing to see who woke

7:55

up with who in the mornings.

7:57

Jerry Val knows that scene very

7:59

well. Everybody knew. everybody and there

8:01

were a lot of really good

8:04

times a lot of fun times.

8:06

Tracy and I just became friends.

8:08

Tracy was especially popular among men.

8:11

Good looking. One of the most

8:13

attractive women out there I would

8:15

say. Some people didn't like her

8:18

maybe because she was that good looking.

8:20

But Tracy only had eyes for David.

8:22

At the beginning when I first met

8:24

them they loved each other, they were

8:26

spending time together, they enjoyed doing things

8:29

together. But their relationship was volatile. Most

8:31

of the time they were a lot

8:33

of fun to be around, but boy

8:35

when they argued, you just wanted to

8:37

get away from it. The loudest and

8:39

longest arguments were over finances and David's

8:42

gambling debts. So the money was going

8:44

out faster than it was coming in.

8:46

Absolutely. I hoped that things would get

8:48

better and it just didn't. In

8:51

fact, the arguing got worse.

8:53

It was cats and dogs. Every

8:55

time we saw each other, there

8:57

were a lot more angry words

8:59

than there were happy. Sometimes

9:01

it got rough. Did he batter

9:04

you? No. Not on a regular

9:06

basis. Did he ever batter

9:08

you? We got in some shoveling

9:10

matches, but I wouldn't say

9:13

that's battering. In the spring

9:15

of 2002, after almost four

9:17

years together, it was over.

9:19

And so you said, we're done. Yeah.

9:22

I told him that this isn't

9:24

what I wanted. And, you

9:26

know, we should probably think

9:28

about going our own ways.

9:30

But going their separate ways

9:33

would be complicated. David

9:35

reportedly owed more than

9:37

$100,000 in back taxes

9:39

to the IRS. To

9:41

protect his property, he had

9:44

the house put in Tracy's name.

9:46

You want a full ownership of

9:48

the house? Well, I had full ownership

9:51

of the house. Can I get an officer

9:53

to come throughout my

9:55

house? David disagreed. Arguments

9:57

over ownership of the house

9:59

escalates. on April 9th when he

10:01

called the police. He was living here.

10:03

David Nixon. He was living that Tracy

10:06

had changed the locks to the house.

10:08

She has now locked me out of

10:10

my own house. I'm sitting out here

10:12

in the driveway with nobody here and

10:15

I'm locked out. My house and it's

10:17

my stuff and I want to know

10:19

my life. We'll get someone out there

10:21

and they can explain that all to

10:24

you, okay? The police help settle that

10:26

argument. So after that domestic disturbance call

10:28

in April the 9th, things were civil

10:30

between the two of you? I wouldn't

10:33

say civil, it was business. I

10:35

wasn't going to leave him high

10:37

and dry. Almost two weeks later,

10:39

David Nixon was dead. I was

10:42

crying and they just said he

10:44

had been murdered. He was shot

10:46

and burned. Didn't even cross my

10:48

mind that had been hurt or

10:50

injured in any way. Tracy says

10:52

she was stunned by the news. You

10:54

must have been thinking like, who could

10:56

have done this? Sure. I mean, it

10:59

was, there was a lot of

11:01

things going through my mind. I

11:03

just, I just couldn't believe it.

11:05

Donna Lella, David's first wife,

11:07

could believe it. When I went to

11:09

the police department, those were my

11:11

first words that Sunday night

11:13

I went there. Tracy frame

11:15

did it, David told me I had

11:17

to tell you this. Thanks

11:28

for listening to

11:30

Train to Kill

11:33

from 48 hours.

11:35

Listen on Amazon

11:37

Music or just

11:39

ask Alexa, play

11:41

the podcast Train

11:44

to Kill, the dog

11:46

trainer, the heiress, and

11:49

the bodyguard on

11:51

Amazon Music.

11:54

He was preparing for

11:57

the worst to hear Donald

11:59

Ella tell the story.

12:01

David Nixon, her ex-husband,

12:03

had a premonition that

12:05

he would be murdered. He

12:08

told me what was going

12:10

to happen. And what's more,

12:12

he knew the person who would

12:14

kill him. He was going

12:16

to be murdered by Tracy.

12:18

He used the word murder.

12:20

That Tracy was going to kill

12:22

him. He didn't call the

12:25

police. With his suspicions or

12:27

his fears. No? And I

12:29

didn't think to tell him that.

12:31

Donna went to the police

12:34

and reported David missing after

12:36

he didn't return phone messages

12:39

from their son Nicholas. Donna

12:41

then confronted Tracy Frame over

12:44

the phone. What did you ask her? I

12:46

asked her what she did with

12:48

David. And what did she say?

12:50

And she said, well, he's on

12:52

vacation. What makes you think I

12:54

did something to David? I said,

12:57

David's missing, Tracy. What'd you do?

12:59

I kept asking for that. Tracy

13:01

wasn't worried about David's disappearance.

13:03

What were you thinking? Nothing.

13:06

I mean, it's normal. At

13:08

that point, it was not uncommon for

13:10

him to do what he wanted to

13:12

go out with the guys or go

13:14

stay in a hotel. I didn't call

13:16

him to beg him to come home

13:18

or whatever. Absolutely not. She

13:21

says David sometimes snuck off to

13:23

Las Vegas for a weekend of

13:25

gambling. What else happened in Vegas?

13:28

I don't really know how to

13:30

say this. Apparently there

13:32

were prostitutes, call girls,

13:35

other activities that happened.

13:37

Despite their differences,

13:39

Tracy and David were

13:41

still living together at the

13:43

house in grapevine. But David

13:46

had found another place to

13:48

live and was making arrangements

13:50

to move just days before

13:52

his murder. You were discussing

13:55

plans for him to move

13:57

his things out of the

13:59

house. And what did he ask you

14:01

to do? To rent a van. I

14:03

mean, we've rented them before. Tracy

14:06

did rent a Penske moving

14:08

van and furniture dolly, but

14:10

David never returned. Since David

14:12

and Tracy lived together, she

14:14

was our key witness. She

14:16

was the one we wanted

14:18

to talk to the most.

14:20

Great Fine police detective Larry

14:22

Hallmark was assigned to investigate

14:24

the murder of David Nixon.

14:26

Once we met her, her

14:28

demeanor was completely. not what

14:30

I expected or not what

14:32

would be normal under those

14:35

circumstances. They just said he had

14:37

been murdered, gunshot wound, and

14:39

they had to use the dental records.

14:41

The first thing she asked was how did

14:44

they identify him, which I thought

14:46

was an extremely suspicious response.

14:48

The detective is quoted as

14:50

saying that you asked immediately,

14:53

how do they identify the

14:55

body? And that's not true. That's

14:57

not true. No. Frane told

14:59

detectives that she was

15:02

home alone the night

15:04

David disappeared. She agreed

15:06

to be questioned on

15:08

videotape at the police

15:10

station. Tracy tells them

15:12

that she and David

15:14

were having problems in

15:16

the months leading to

15:18

his murder. Tracy learned

15:20

she was pregnant the

15:22

previous fall just as

15:24

her relationship with David

15:26

was crumbling. totally

15:28

against it, wasn't interested

15:31

in it at all. Tracy now says

15:33

health complications forced

15:36

her to terminate the pregnancy,

15:38

but at the time she

15:40

blamed David, writing to him,

15:42

I have given you everything,

15:44

heart and soul, including murder

15:46

of her unborn baby. I

15:48

hope you are happy because

15:50

I am not. The loss

15:52

of her unborn baby, and

15:55

David's reaction, left Tracy

15:57

bitter. But he was unapologetic.

16:00

He could be cruel.

16:03

He could be

16:05

very vicious with

16:07

his tongue. But

16:09

was she angry

16:11

enough to commit

16:13

murder? Homework and

16:15

another detective, Matt

16:17

Gudgel, start pressing Tracy

16:20

for answers. She could

16:22

never tell the truth

16:25

during that entire interview.

16:27

She was evasive and

16:30

sometimes she just out and

16:32

out lied. Did you shoot

16:34

David Nixon? No, I didn't. Did

16:36

you wrap him in an

16:39

electric blanket and set

16:41

him a fire? No. Do you know the

16:43

circumstances surrounding

16:46

David Nixon's murder?

16:48

No. While Hallmark

16:50

had his suspicions about Tracy

16:52

frame, he had little to

16:54

go on. As far as

16:56

physical evidence, you don't have

16:58

much to work with, do you? No. No.

17:01

No gun? No bullets? No

17:03

blood? No blood? No blood.

17:05

And an exhaustive search of

17:07

the crime scene, the storm

17:09

drain, yielded few clues. The

17:12

area had already been washed

17:14

down by firefighters. You actually

17:16

went down in the storm

17:18

drain? It's an eight-foot tall

17:21

storm drain that's 15 feet

17:23

below where we are standing

17:25

right now. And I actually

17:27

walked that 94 feet looking

17:30

for any physical evidence. What

17:32

I found was that this

17:34

storm drain was clean. I

17:36

didn't even find gravel or

17:38

broken glass in here. The

17:42

police did find a set of

17:44

tire tracks at the scene providing

17:46

a hallmark with an important clue.

17:49

The tire tracks that backed up

17:51

to this body were the same

17:53

make model and size as the

17:55

tires that were on the Pinske

17:58

truck that Tracy had rented. And

18:00

Hallmark soon caught another break.

18:02

Security cameras at a Tom

18:05

Thumb supermarket near David and

18:07

Tracy's house captured fleeting images

18:09

over that weekend. Blurry at

18:11

best, but recorded at very

18:13

precise times. The videotape shows

18:15

a pesky moving van that

18:18

looks similar to the one

18:20

Tracy rented, driving through the

18:22

parking lot. Also on tape,

18:24

someone abandons David's white Lexus

18:26

in the lot three days

18:28

after his murder. The

18:31

camera show a woman

18:33

walking outside the store.

18:35

Inside, she's seen buying

18:37

several items and then

18:39

leaving. Now she's going

18:41

to come out of the

18:43

store right there. Is that

18:46

woman Tracy frame? You're sure

18:48

that's her. It's a woman

18:50

that looks like her. But

18:52

it wasn't you. No. Doesn't

18:55

even look like me. Were you?

18:57

at the store with the truck that

18:59

night? You aren't there? No. I

19:01

was at my parents' house in

19:04

Arlington, Saturday and Sunday.

19:06

But if it is Tracy caught on

19:08

tape, she's caught without an

19:10

explanation. What's your theory?

19:12

What happened that night? Tracy

19:14

had finally made the decision

19:17

that she was just going

19:19

to have to kill David. And

19:21

she shot him while he was

19:23

sleeping. Then

19:25

she rented a moving

19:27

truck and waited until

19:29

the cover of night

19:31

to move his body.

19:33

How does a woman

19:35

weighing 145 pounds dispose

19:37

of a body weighing

19:39

245 pounds? You use

19:41

a furniture, darling. It

19:43

would just be a

19:45

matter of rolling him

19:47

onto that dolly and strapping

19:50

him down. Homeworks says Tracy

19:52

tried but failed to shove

19:54

Nixon's body down into the

19:57

storm drain. You believe that

19:59

she... dump the body here

20:01

and then two days later

20:04

returned to set it a

20:06

fire to get rid of

20:08

the evidence. Right. And she

20:10

could just sweep him into

20:12

that storm drain and he

20:14

would just disappear forever. That

20:17

alleged plan fell apart after

20:19

a passer-by spotted the fire.

20:21

But the question remained, why

20:23

would Tracy want David dead?

20:25

Money, greed, that's the only

20:28

thing that I had to

20:30

go on. There was nothing

20:32

to gain. Nothing. Tracy is

20:34

about to counterattack and the

20:36

new man in her life

20:38

is leading the way. You

20:41

believe that she knows nothing

20:43

about the circumstances surrounding David

20:45

Nixon's murder? I don't think

20:47

she has a clue. I'm

20:49

innocent. I've

21:03

never been in trouble with

21:06

the police. I've never thought

21:08

the police were anything but

21:11

out there to help you.

21:13

And the last time we

21:15

talked to him was Thursday.

21:18

I didn't know what the

21:20

heck was going on. I'm

21:23

confused. Why is that why?

21:25

That is not true. You

21:27

need to listen to what

21:30

I'm about to tell you.

21:32

You really do. I'm going

21:35

to promise you I'm not

21:37

mad at you. The day

21:39

after Tracy frame met with

21:42

police detectives, she was arrested

21:44

and charged with the murder

21:47

of David Nixon. What are

21:49

you thinking about right now?

21:52

Just been a horrible experience.

21:54

I knew that it would

21:56

happen. It was no surprise.

22:00

I knew in my heart that

22:02

she had done it, but what'd

22:04

stick was the question. Tracy was

22:06

released on bond and fitted with

22:08

an electronic monitoring device to be

22:11

worn until her trial. To go

22:13

to a restaurant or to go

22:15

shopping in shorts when it's 105

22:17

degrees, it's hard. Everybody stares. These

22:20

bruises on my ankle and stuff.

22:22

But Tracy has her defenders. A

22:24

lot of cold, a lot of

22:26

vibration, none of the p-word. And

22:28

none is more loyal than dentist

22:31

Roland Taylor, a native of Great

22:33

Britain, who's settled in Texas. Everybody

22:35

goes, what a bitch she is.

22:37

She's totally the opposite. And in

22:40

her hour of need, he is

22:42

standing behind her. Who would want

22:44

David Nixon did? Probably the people

22:46

that he owed money to. And

22:48

he owed a lot. And Tracy

22:51

frame did not have a motive.

22:53

You know what? It would behoof

22:55

her to keep her to keep

22:57

him alive. Because he owed her

23:00

a ton of money. Roland and

23:02

Tracy were longtime friends from Grapevine

23:04

Lake. I've never met anybody like

23:06

her. She's very smart. She's fun.

23:08

After her arrest, a romance developed.

23:11

All Tracy's ever wanted to do

23:13

is love and be love. That's

23:15

all she's ever wanted. And they

23:17

say, Roland, you better watch her

23:20

back. That's why I put a

23:22

ring on her finger. Roland

23:24

and Tracy are engaged to be

23:26

married. I will never ever ever

23:29

ever stop loving her. I'll never

23:31

leave. I'm there. Donald fear is

23:33

Tracy's defense attorney. As the state

23:35

said, this is purely a circumstantial

23:37

case. Fear has worked on only

23:39

three murder cases in his career,

23:41

but he's confident he can quickly

23:43

win an acquittal for frame. She

23:46

was arrested in the first 36

23:48

hours in a homicide case and

23:50

that's just... unheard of unless it

23:52

happens to be standing there with

23:54

the smoking gun screaming I did

23:56

it I killed him. Fear says

23:58

an ambitious detective Hallmark got it

24:01

all wrong from the beginning. You

24:03

have a detective corporal who wants

24:05

to be a detective sergeant. A

24:07

high profile homicide case comes across

24:09

his desk. Make a quick arrest,

24:11

make a quick case, you look

24:13

good, you make sergeant. Fear says

24:15

the case against his client doesn't

24:18

add up. Pointing out that no

24:20

incriminating evidence was found at the

24:22

house or in the moving truck.

24:24

Where did she kill him? They

24:26

tore the house apart and if

24:28

she killed him in there, she

24:30

had white carpet. Miami CSI needs

24:32

to hire her to show how

24:35

she can defeat all possible scientific

24:37

trace evidence, dragging a body across

24:39

a house through vehicles and then

24:41

out on the ground. He says

24:43

the videotaped interview with detectives was

24:45

designed to trap his client. Did

24:47

you find her evasive during that

24:50

questioning? No, I found her confused.

24:52

You saw interrogation questions aimed at

24:54

trying to make her look bad

24:56

and trip her up. Your car

24:58

was still there. Someday, at night,

25:00

maybe. That's not true. And it

25:02

wasn't it. See, now we're getting

25:04

back into everybody's lying the tree.

25:07

Oh, that's not what I'm saying.

25:09

And she looked bad. And that's

25:11

how it's supposed to work. Break

25:13

them down. Who knows? Maybe they'll

25:15

pull a Perry Mason. I did

25:17

it. I killed him. God help

25:19

me. I didn't get that. So

25:22

you just keep beating on her.

25:24

So you just keep beating on

25:26

her. and it worked, worked real

25:28

well. Donald Fear and Tracy Frame

25:30

also dismissed the videotape evidence, allegedly

25:32

showing Tracy abandoning the white Lexus,

25:34

parking the Penske truck, and shopping

25:36

at the convenience store. Who is

25:39

that shadowy figure? I don't know.

25:41

If I did, they would be

25:43

sitting here and I wouldn't be.

25:45

Tracy says no one can tell

25:47

who that is, but more than

25:49

just a blurry figure is being

25:51

recorded in this transaction. Store records

25:53

show that whoever this person is

25:56

she uses Tracy's store discount card

25:58

at the checkout, saving 19 cents.

26:00

Someone using your discount card, a

26:02

weekend, David went missing. That's correct.

26:04

But it wasn't you. No? Doesn't

26:06

even look like me. Tracy admits

26:08

the discount card is difficult to

26:11

explain. So I don't have an

26:13

answer for it, but I don't

26:15

think that I would use a

26:17

discount card if I was trying

26:19

to sneak around town. One would

26:21

think. I agree. Frame and her

26:23

attorney throw out several theories about

26:25

who may have killed David Nixon.

26:28

First, they suggest Nixon could have

26:30

been murdered during a robbery. Was

26:32

it common for David to walk

26:34

around with big wads of cash

26:36

in his pocket? Oh yes, when

26:38

he had it, he liked to

26:40

show everybody. He liked to be

26:43

flashy. Or that it was payback

26:45

over gambling debts. Well, I mean,

26:47

I knew he gambled. I just

26:49

didn't know to the... depth of

26:51

it I guess I could say.

26:53

And they point an accusing finger

26:55

at someone who knew both David

26:57

Nixon and Tracy Frane very well.

27:00

Hey Paul, this is Jerry Val,

27:02

best out of sales in Fort

27:04

Worth. Jerry Val, friend at the

27:06

lake, used to be a friend.

27:08

He's into businesses of helping people,

27:10

you know, if they need to

27:12

borrow money or whatever. And the

27:14

business of helping people who want

27:17

to borrow money. Okay, hold on.

27:19

Can I answer that? Can I

27:21

answer that? Fear stops Tracy from

27:23

finishing her sentence. I think where

27:25

y'all come from, they call him

27:27

Shylocks. I'm an easy target. I

27:29

sell you cars. I take a

27:32

thousand for it. At one time,

27:34

David loaned me some money. And

27:36

right after Christmas, I paid him

27:38

back. Jerry and David had a

27:40

plan to meet the night he

27:42

disappeared. Tracy and her lawyer and

27:44

says the meeting was to discuss

27:46

David's interests in a new boat.

27:49

And he had $25,000 cash on

27:51

him, but he took from the

27:53

bank to buy the bank to

27:55

buy the boat. Now David didn't

27:57

carry large money. He didn't owe

27:59

anybody money we We were going

28:01

to get together for a drink.

28:04

Well, we ran out of time.

28:06

It was just getting too late

28:08

for us to go out and

28:10

meet. And so I spoke to

28:12

him on the telephone. And that

28:14

was the last time I spoke

28:16

to David. And Donald Fear raises

28:18

questions about yet another possible suspect.

28:21

Did Tracy frame stand to gain

28:23

anything financially? David Nixon stuff. Not

28:25

a thing. But the first ex-wife

28:27

did. What

28:29

are you suggesting? I'm suggesting

28:31

stating a fact. Two months

28:33

before he died, David Nixon

28:35

took out a life insurance

28:37

policy for half a million

28:39

dollars. And Nicholas was named

28:41

the primary beneficiary. Yes. She's

28:43

secondary beneficiary, but in all

28:45

reality, as her son is

28:48

the primary beneficiary, she got

28:50

the money. Tracy Frank got

28:52

nothing. So who's to gain

28:54

the most? That's obvious. I

28:56

mean, Donna has gained everything.

28:58

Did you receive anything from

29:00

David Nixon's estate? Very little.

29:02

Very little. Less than $10,000.

29:04

I don't find losing David

29:06

a gain at all. In

29:08

fact, I've pointed the hardest

29:10

part of my life for

29:12

Nicholas. So, when you found

29:14

out that Tracy was arrested,

29:16

what was... Going through your

29:18

mind, did you believe it

29:20

was possible? It had to

29:22

be her. Everybody else, I

29:24

knew that knew him, liked

29:27

him. She was the only

29:29

one who had anything against

29:31

him, really. As the trial

29:33

begins, the defense is confident

29:35

the prosecution has no real

29:37

case, no proof. We cannot

29:39

get a handle on even

29:41

what their theory of the

29:43

crime was. insisting that the

29:45

police never investigated other suspects.

29:47

Tracy frame is the only

29:49

person on the planet that

29:51

would absolutely not... have killed

29:53

David, that would have put

29:55

money into getting him a

29:57

bodyguard if he had been

29:59

threatened, because the only way

30:01

she was ever going to

30:03

get her money back out

30:06

of the thousand she'd spend

30:08

on him was keep him

30:10

alive and selling houses. Hey,

30:15

I'm Tank Sinatra here with

30:17

my co-host. Investigators later. And

30:19

we would like to tell

30:21

you a little bit about

30:23

our podcast, Psychopedia. It's true

30:25

crime infused with comedy. Making

30:27

it a crimeity, and that

30:29

is our word. Thank you,

30:32

we made it up. I

30:34

do extensive investigative research and

30:36

go deep into the darkest

30:38

corners of the human psyche.

30:40

And I'm just here to

30:42

lighten things up a little

30:44

bit with you or baby.

30:46

You know, never at the

30:48

expense of the victims though,

30:50

obviously. Obviously. More than three

30:53

years after David Nixon's murder.

30:55

Hello. Good morning. Tracy Frame

30:57

is finally about to stand

30:59

trial. I feel fine. I

31:01

feel fine. I feel fine.

31:03

I feel like everything's going

31:05

to turn out right. What

31:07

do you make? pretty apparent

31:09

that they don't they don't

31:11

have as much as they

31:14

would lead you to believe

31:16

they had. There's no doubt

31:18

in your mind that that

31:20

Tracy frame killed David Nixon.

31:22

I think if you look

31:24

at Tracy frame she's just

31:26

an unpredictable type person and

31:28

she's the type of person

31:30

who could kill without a

31:32

motive. What kind of personality

31:35

are you talking about? Well,

31:37

Tracy Frame has a personality

31:39

where it's all about Tracy.

31:41

Tracy is going to get

31:43

what Tracy wants and she

31:45

doesn't care how she gets

31:47

it. Even if it means

31:49

killing someone? If it means

31:51

murder? Tracy's willing to do

31:53

that. Tracy's fiance, Roland Taylor,

31:56

says prosecutors are trying the

31:58

wrong woman. Is that Tracy

32:00

inside the town thumb store?

32:02

No. No. No. The thighs.

32:04

They were touching. And I'll

32:06

tell you what? That lady

32:08

has got a set of

32:10

legs that don't quit. There's

32:12

no doubt in my mind

32:14

that's not her. No. Not

32:17

at all. She says she

32:19

was never at the Tom

32:21

Thumb store. Do you believe

32:23

that? Absolutely not. She says

32:25

that someone else used her

32:27

Tom Thumb card. Do you

32:29

believe that? Absolutely not. I

32:31

thought we'd hang out here

32:33

in the law. With little

32:35

forensic evidence, no eyewitnesses and

32:38

a washdown crime scene. The

32:40

defense believes the prosecution simply

32:42

cannot make a case for

32:44

murder. You know, we're going

32:46

to show you the smoking

32:48

mirrors for two weeks and

32:50

you're just going to be

32:52

overwhelmed by that so much

32:54

smoke there must be a

32:56

fire somewhere. So who's responsible

32:59

for David Nixon's murder? Today,

33:01

I don't think we'll ever

33:03

find out because they never

33:05

looked very far once they

33:07

accused me. In the courtroom,

33:09

Tracy's defense was to go

33:11

in the offense, arguing that

33:13

the prosecution failed to offer

33:15

proof beyond a reasonable doubt,

33:17

that there was no real

33:20

evidence linking Tracy to the

33:22

crime, that no blood was

33:24

found at the house, nothing

33:26

was found at the storm

33:28

drain, that these tire tracks

33:30

could have come from any

33:32

number of other trucks, and

33:34

that this woman is not

33:36

Tracy frame. And along with

33:38

no apparent motive, there's no

33:41

murder weapon, no gun. Or

33:43

was there? Did your dad

33:45

have a gun? Yeah. And

33:47

where did he keep it?

33:49

And it's safe. You saw

33:51

that? Yeah. You saw the

33:53

gun. Yeah. He showed it

33:55

to me just to, you

33:57

know, make sure I was

33:59

okay with it. David's safe

34:01

was in the bedroom of the

34:04

house. he shared with Tracy.

34:06

The police didn't find a

34:08

gun in the in the safe

34:10

in his house. I don't

34:12

know. Lake Grapevine perhaps? Down a

34:15

drain pipe? I don't know

34:17

what she did with it.

34:19

She? Tracy. Did David keep a

34:21

gun in the house? No.

34:23

You never did? No. He

34:25

didn't keep a gun in the

34:27

house? No. Police

34:30

did not find a gun,

34:32

but they did find two

34:34

key witnesses to bolster their

34:36

circumstantial case against Tracy. She

34:38

just kept asking a lot

34:40

of questions of how to

34:42

get stains out. John Wright

34:44

and Mike He didn't remember

34:46

the day Tracy Frane came

34:48

into their genatorial supply company

34:50

shopping for cleaning products to

34:52

remove odor and blood. We

34:54

sold her probably $100 with

34:56

stuff. It was one day

34:59

after David disappeared. I don't

35:01

even want to use the

35:03

word desperate that appeared desperate

35:05

for it's got to work.

35:07

So Tracy asked the salesman

35:09

if there was a foolproof

35:11

way to remove blood stains.

35:13

Then we told her about

35:15

the muratic acid, which we

35:17

don't sell. The next day,

35:19

the shadowy figure who prosecutors

35:21

say is Tracy Frame, is

35:23

at the Tom Thumb store

35:25

buying just that. Muriatic acid.

35:27

Every item purchased by that

35:30

woman was found in the

35:32

home when we searched it

35:34

when we searched it. For

35:36

the prosecution, all the pieces

35:38

of the puzzle fit. I

35:40

think once you put all

35:42

of that information together, I

35:44

think any reasonable person can

35:46

say that that is Tracy

35:48

frame. And as for the

35:50

defense suggestion, that Donna may

35:52

have had more to gain

35:54

from David's death and Tracy,

35:56

investigators say there was nothing

35:58

to it. I'd heard some

36:01

innuendo from Tracy and her

36:03

attorneys that somehow there was

36:05

this large insurance policy. Everything

36:07

checked out there was never

36:09

any anything suspicious about Donna's

36:11

behavior. Almost nothing Tracy told

36:13

us checked out. Every trail

36:15

led to Tracy. But will

36:17

the jury agree? On the

36:19

eve of the verdict, Tracy

36:21

Frame, who did not take

36:23

the stand, seems subdued and

36:25

uncertain. I don't believe in

36:27

justice very much right now

36:29

and I don't know how

36:32

I'll feel after it, but

36:34

I have to believe that

36:36

the right thing will be

36:38

done. I think Tracy's so

36:40

an opportunity. And she took

36:42

it. It was all inference,

36:44

coincidence, could be, maybe, looks

36:46

good. Well, that isn't enough

36:48

to convict somebody at Harvard.

36:50

After a two-week long trial,

36:52

it is judgment day for

36:54

Tracy Frank. Scared? Yes, of

36:56

course. Very. If convicted of

36:58

murder. She faces a possible

37:00

sentence of life in prison.

37:03

It's a reality, but I

37:05

don't think that I'll have

37:07

to worry about that. Defense

37:09

lawyer Don Fear is anxious.

37:11

Actually, we're confident that we're

37:13

going to be successful and

37:15

that Jerry will see that

37:17

clearly my client is not

37:19

guilty. As a lawyer, who

37:21

knows? The day March 9,

37:23

2005 would also have been

37:25

David Nixon's 43rd birthday. Nicholas

37:27

is feeling distress. Members of

37:29

David's family from New Hampshire

37:31

have attended the trial. For

37:34

three years now we've been

37:36

struggling with this and waiting

37:38

for this day and we're

37:40

glad it's here. Today's David's

37:42

birthday. Our fingers crossed. Whatever

37:44

the outcome, for Donna and

37:46

Nicholas some questions may never

37:48

be answered. What was it

37:50

that Tracy frame had on

37:52

David Nixon? Why couldn't she

37:54

let him go? How did

37:56

it? get so out of

37:58

control that she wanted to

38:00

kill him. I don't know

38:02

those answers. Am I sure

38:05

they have the right person?

38:07

Yes. And the moment of

38:09

judgment finally arrives. The jury

38:11

has reached a verdict. I'll

38:13

ask the audience. I realize

38:15

there are motions in here,

38:17

but we need for everyone

38:19

to keep their composure. Judge

38:21

Mike Thomas has not permitted

38:23

cameras to cover the trial,

38:25

but he does allow us

38:27

inside for the verdict. We

38:31

the jury found the

38:33

defendant guilty of the

38:35

offense of murder is

38:37

charged in indictment. The

38:39

jury takes less than

38:41

four hours to find Tracy

38:44

guilty. The sentence, 40

38:46

years. Yes, I'm very happy.

38:48

Very happy with the

38:50

jury's verdict. Hi. About time.

38:53

David's family is elated,

38:55

but later that night, the

38:58

mood becomes thoughtful. David

39:00

will never ever be with

39:02

us again. She's taking the

39:05

rest of his life

39:07

away from us, and I

39:09

really don't think she

39:11

deserves to have any freedom.

39:14

Just quiet, it's finally

39:16

over, you know. It's going

39:18

on long enough. Donna

39:20

worries how Nicholas is coping

39:23

without his father. The

39:25

little things that his dad

39:27

did, the big peacock, chestic

39:30

and outgoing, that's my

39:32

boy. That's what he's struggling

39:34

with. That's what he

39:36

misses. Donna wishes that somehow

39:39

she had done more.

39:41

Mad that I can't change

39:43

anything. Can't bring him.

39:45

I know in my mind,

39:48

Tracy killed David. Jerry Vowle

39:50

is sure the jury

39:52

got it right. She probably

39:55

just said, heck with

39:57

you, bang. So

39:59

the of was money. I

40:01

think it was money and

40:03

I think it was a

40:05

sense of entitlement. Entitlement says

40:07

Detective Larry Harmark to her

40:09

fair share of the house.

40:11

David Nixon was killed for

40:13

$80,000. I think he could

40:16

have been killed for $80

40:18

if it had suited Tracy.

40:20

Tracy Frank was the person

40:22

that ultimately has paid the

40:24

price for this crime, not

40:26

the person who did it.

40:28

Roland Taylor remains loyal to

40:30

his fiance. Aren't you setting

40:32

yourself up for many years

40:34

of heartache? No, it's not

40:36

heartache. No. Being engaged to

40:38

a woman who's serving 40

40:40

years and stay penitentiary? No.

40:42

It'd be heartache if she

40:44

wasn't in my life. There's

40:46

nothing here anymore. Except a

40:48

memory. Do

40:58

you think you have strong grounds

41:00

for an appeal? Oh God, I

41:02

hope so. Yes. Tracy Frame spoke

41:04

to us just weeks after her

41:06

conviction. How did the prosecutors manage

41:08

to convince the jury that you

41:10

were guilty of murder? I'm not

41:12

sure. They threw a lot of

41:15

stuff at him. How have you

41:17

been getting through these last couple

41:19

of weeks? Just

41:31

the best of

41:33

my life. What's

41:35

your greatest fear

41:37

right now? The

41:39

unknown, I guess.

41:41

Do you think

41:43

you have the

41:45

inner strength to

41:47

get through this?

41:49

No, no. He's

41:51

scared. What are

41:53

you scared of?

41:55

The most. Seriously?

42:00

I don't really get the whole thing, don't really

42:02

get the whole thing, you

42:04

know, Do you think when you weird. older Do

42:06

you think when you get

42:08

older you'll be able to understand

42:10

it any better? it

42:12

You can't understand that kind

42:14

of person. that kind

42:17

of person. Thanks

42:34

for listening to to

42:36

Kill Kill from 48 hours. Listen

42:38

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