00:00:00
foreign [Music] [Music] I'm raising my family here my parents raised their family here and
00:00:24
their parents raised their family here it's a place that I like to call home and hopefully this is where I'll remain
00:00:31
Cleveland Tennessee is beautiful known as the city with spirit and you can't swing a ball bat without
00:00:40
hitting a church a lot of people know one another and we do have a lot of older homes and a lot of history here
00:00:47
I'm very proud of our town [Music] I've been a hairdresser for over 30 years you have certain clients that you kind
00:00:57
of click with and you're closer to and for me Marcia was one of those clients she was fun she was outgoing
00:01:06
she was one of my favorite cousins she did confide in me and I confided in her she was beautiful
00:01:13
she was always kind she loved her husband she mentioned him every time when I think of her my first
00:01:22
few words would not be giving loving I didn't see a lot of that from her even as her stepdaughter
00:01:29
how would you describe her loner I believe that she was very depressed a case that sounds like a 48 Hours
00:01:37
mystery Bradley County woman disappears without a trace it struck me oh my goodness she's you
00:01:44
know she's not what time do they she's overdue when Marsha disappeared in June of 2009 her husband Donnie Brantley
00:01:56
did not report her missing it's hard seeing my father in this way it's a scary thing
00:02:04
I know the inside of this man in the heart of him he wouldn't hurt anyone he loved her yes
00:02:10
and they had a real marriage yes during the years of your marriage am I correct that you maintained romantic and
00:02:20
relationships with persons other than your wife 's a counselor I plead the fifth we have
00:02:29
a guy who's told numerous lies about where his wife went and we can prove otherwise
00:02:36
he may be the singularly most dishonest defendant I've ever dealt with authorities have not located Marsha's
00:02:44
body but were able to charge her husband with premeditated first degree murder based on evidence I think we have a
00:02:51
great circumstantial case there's no blood no fingerprints no DNA no body and there's no crime scene what proof is
00:03:00
there that she's in fact dead as opposed to gone missing or living someplace else
00:03:06
I felt compelled to find out what happened to her I knew that something was very very
00:03:14
wrong he murdered her he murdered her that's crazy it's ridiculous charging you with first
00:03:24
degree murder you understand what the charge is it's just not him he's 100 innocent of these charges if he did do
00:03:32
something to her and if I just let this go he'll get away with it [Music] yeah foreign
00:03:54
[Music] 48 hours missing Marsha continues in 90 seconds [Music] you're ready to go we're ready for trial
00:04:22
we're actually not going to be able to answer any questions until Justice May finally be at hand for Marsha Brantley a
00:04:28
50 year old writer and animal lover who disappeared in 2009. in February 2018 Marsha's husband Donnie Brantley has
00:04:37
come to court ready to stand trial for allegedly murdering her this is a very important day for Donnie Brantley that's
00:04:46
very important he's had a cloud of Suspicion hanging over his head for nine years
00:04:51
back in 2014 when 48 Hours first began investigating this case I wanted to have just a moment with you all too Marcia's
00:05:00
aunt medra and cousin Jenna met with Steve Crump who was about to take over as District Attorney General ultimately
00:05:07
I believe we will be able to do justice in this case we're just looking forward to bringing this thing to a close we're
00:05:13
going to create within this District a Cold Case working group Trump raised the family's hopes that he could win a
00:05:20
conviction in a case guaranteed to be an uphill battle for the prosecution because Marcia Brantley had simply
00:05:28
vanished we don't have a crime scene we don't have a dead body we don't have what you normally think of in terms of a
00:05:35
homicide case as the years passed Janna and her husband Mark became frustrated that
00:05:43
there would never be Justice it's a tragedy it's something that no one should have to experience or no one
00:05:48
should have to go through what do you think what happened to her will we find her
00:05:55
it's a good question especially since the man they believe knows what happened to Marsha has in their opinion never
00:06:03
offered to help not a phone call not an email not a text message no not a postcard nothing none of her family did
00:06:12
he organize any search parties and he proffered no help she was the love of your life right
00:06:20
yes this civil deposition in 2013 shows that Donnie likely will never have much to say when did she stop being the love
00:06:29
of your life when I played the fifth did anything to do with her disappearance did I pleaded yeah
00:06:40
this is the home where Marcia and Donnie live for nine years Jenna and medra went
00:06:45
into the house in 2012. three years after Marcia went missing they were upset by the chaos they found
00:06:53
somebody had no respect for her and we know who that was and Donnie Brantley is going to pay for what he's done to her
00:07:02
there was not a picture of Marcia to be seen anywhere I mean it were pictures of
00:07:07
Donnie and his daughter but none of Marsha growing up Jenna was especially close to Marcia her older cousin she
00:07:17
would come and pick me up from high school sometimes and we would go get ice cream from a young age Marcia had an
00:07:23
endearing Passion for Pets she had her favorite little dachshund named Barney she taught him how to pray before he ate
00:07:30
his meals he would cross this little paws as an adult Marcia volunteered at a local animal shelter I looked up to her
00:07:40
when I was a little girl she was 5 10. Kim shank was Marsha's closest friend even though she seemed to kind of
00:07:47
command the room she was probably one of the more shy people to be that commanding with her physical presence
00:07:54
she was a friendly person a sweet person especially to her parents she grew up in
00:08:00
an affluent family and only child with no children of her own she took care of her mother a lot because her mother was
00:08:07
ill for a very long time in 1999 Marcia met Donnie Brantley on a dating website he was a divorced father of a teenage
00:08:16
daughter she called me and she said well I've met someone and was getting really
00:08:22
serious and she said I want you to meet him Marcia and Donnie shared a love for the outdoors
00:08:28
was an avid hiker while Donny was a competitive bicycle Rider at 41 this was Marcia's first serious relationship he
00:08:39
was what I always wanted for her somebody that she could be into and love and share her life with and live on
00:08:44
Happily Ever After Marcia even wrote poetry for Donnie with love so pure and true I can but only
00:08:52
thank my God I fell in love with you Marcia and my Donny's daughter Elise was happy her dad had found a soul mate we
00:09:02
would sit and watch movies on weekends and that kind of thing they would hold hands they were married in 2000 and
00:09:09
moved into the house Marsha's parents had built for her but shortly after the newlyweds settled down tragedy struck
00:09:17
her mother passed away in November of 2000 and her father passed away in December imagine losing both your
00:09:24
parents in less than a month she was devastated it was a lot of sadness I mean it was heartbreaking I saw a
00:09:31
different side of her when she lost her parents there wasn't a lot of Happiness after that but Marcia did her best to
00:09:40
carry on a large inheritance enabled her to help Donnie set up a handyman business franchise she also quit her job
00:09:48
as housing director at nearby Lee University to pursue her passion she wanted to write young adult novels she
00:09:55
was very talented and definitely had what it took to be successful Reggie J and Nancy Grill were members of a
00:10:03
writers group that Marcia formed in 2007. what was the name of this writing group Thunder Rock Riders group
00:10:11
the other name was the big girl panties group we would critique each other's work and we would say put your big girl
00:10:17
panties on because you know you might get your feelings hurt Nancy and Reggie say Marcia was the best
00:10:24
of the bunch dirty little secrets is a story that Marcia wrote the son Roosevelt the Kudzu cover trees
00:10:32
as I swept the house and chased the dust out of the front door and across the porch of the broom
00:10:38
wonderful imagery she can write this woman yes but in June 2009 a dark chapter began in
00:10:48
Marcia brantley's life with a plot twist right out of a novel she seemed to fall
00:10:54
off the face of the earth I knew that something was very very wrong [Music] [Music]
00:11:18
in her 30 years as a hairdresser in Cleveland Tennessee yeah Kelly delude says Cuts perms and parts
00:11:28
will you do that the way you do that our only part of the job as a hair stylist are you also a therapist we're in their
00:11:36
personal space so people certainly share with us probably a lot more than they would the clerk at the grocery store you
00:11:43
know [Music] but of the hundreds of clients Kelly has cut and consoled over the years
00:11:51
there has been only one whose face haunts her dreams when I would go to sleep at night I would think of Marsha
00:11:58
and when I would wake up in the morning I would think of Marsha Marcia Brantley first came in for a cut
00:12:06
in the year 2000 and the two came together like scissors and hair what was it about Marcia that made the two of you
00:12:14
click we just got along we would just talk the whole time we would just sort of catch up with one another
00:12:19
[Music] she really spoke mostly about her home life with Donnie and her dogs her dogs
00:12:27
were like her children Kelly says Marcia couldn't say enough nice things about her marriage and her
00:12:36
husband as the years went by the two women grew closer but during what turned out to be
00:12:45
Marsha's final hair appointment in April 2009 Kelly saw a side of Marsha that left her concerned she seemed troubled
00:12:55
she seemed a bit depressed she was asking me if the economy had affected the business here and I said
00:13:04
certainly it had you know and she said well you know it's really affecting our business
00:13:11
Marcia told her Donny's handyman business was failing and money was tight still she expected Marcia to call about
00:13:19
six weeks later to set up her next appointment and she was very regimented in coming to see you yeah she yeah she
00:13:27
she colored her hair so most women are sure yeah but Kelly never got that call she was too busy to notice
00:13:35
[Music] but as spring turned to Summer Marsha's neighbor stopped into the salon she said Kaylee when was the last time
00:13:45
you did Marsha's hair and I said let me look and I looked in my file and I said April that's unusual is she okay and she
00:13:53
said she has not been walking her dogs they are barking their heads off and her flowers were dead in the yard and when
00:14:02
she mentioned that it struck me oh my goodness she's not been in that is odd odd enough says Kelly that she was moved
00:14:09
to pick up the phone I called Marcia the call went to voicemail she left a message but didn't hear back
00:14:17
[Music] for days she called again and again no Marsha why not I decided Well I'm
00:14:25
gonna call Donnie and ask him if he knows where Marsha is I actually called Donny's business and the phone was
00:14:33
disconnected so that really concerned me Marsha's neighbor was concerned too so much so that she decided to confront
00:14:42
Donnie in person at his house she literally went up knocked on the door and when he answered she said Donnie
00:14:50
where's Marsha and he told her the most ridiculous story she's leaving me she went out west
00:15:00
had she ever talked about trouble in the marriage no never for Kelly it seemed inconceivable that Marcia would suddenly
00:15:08
leave the house her parents had built for her leave behind her beloved dogs and most of all leave the husband she
00:15:17
adored what are you thinking I'm thinking at that point he has done something to her
00:15:23
I knew that something was very very wrong I had no peace about it and so finally I
00:15:32
thought I'm going to call around and in my mind I thought you know I'm crossing a little line here into meddling you've
00:15:39
become a detective at this point you're gathering information you're calling various people right well I was but you
00:15:46
know I wasn't trying to be a detective I was trying to be a concerned friend Kelly found a member of Marsha's writing
00:15:53
club and got more disturbing news did she tell me that Marcia was no longer coming
00:15:58
one of the strangest things about this case is that for months nobody reported Marcia Brantley missing her relatives
00:16:06
they live on the other side of the state her best friend Kim shank she's in Ohio
00:16:10
and the members of her writers group well they just didn't hang out socially in the end it would be her hairdresser
00:16:20
who tipped authorities to a potential murder I came into work the next day and I called the Cleveland Police Department
00:16:28
and I said I need to report a missing person and he said excuse me are you her mom her sister and I said no actually
00:16:36
I'm her hairdresser he said Well ma'am if he says she's gone and that she left him she left him
00:16:44
undeterred Kelly turned to the best social network she knew her customers and you can cut and talk at the same
00:16:51
time for 30 years Kelly chose a person who is long on brains under all that short hair local
00:17:01
attorney Jerry Hoffer he couldn't get away so when I was cutting his hair I said you know Jerry I'm going to tell
00:17:06
you a story and when I get finished I want you to tell me what you think I'm listening to the stories and I'm just
00:17:11
sitting there thinking now this guy's I might have killed his wife [Music] foreign
00:17:33
I felt like finally Justice is going to be done [Music] probably got my hair cut and I walked
00:17:40
into DA's office and I just kind of in a flippant way I said you've got a dead lady out there you all need to be
00:17:46
looking for prosecutors agreed and sent their investigator Walt hunt now retired to
00:17:53
Marsha's House to look for her when I approached him he told me that they were having some marital issues
00:18:01
but it wasn't just what Brentley said it was how he said it that really caught Hunt's attention he was pretty cool and
00:18:10
maybe a little cooler than I might expect he said he was cool calm steady as a rock he said that is not normal Hunt's
00:18:20
instincts convinced him to call the TBI the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation they would launch what would become a
00:18:28
nine-year coordinated effort between state and local agencies all dedicated to finding Marcia Brantley it was around
00:18:36
October 2011 and I jumped at the opportunity to be able to assist with the investigation when Sac Pike and
00:18:43
David Shoemaker of the Bradley County Sheriff's Office got the case in 2011 they quickly saw why Donnie Brantley was
00:18:51
a suspect he had always denied any role in his wife's disappearance but he'd lied when he claimed that Marcia had
00:18:59
taken her phone I think her cell phone in his possession is easily in my mind the most damning fact the cell phone
00:19:06
never left pinging from a tower that's two miles or less from the home in June of 2009 right around the time
00:19:14
investigators think Marcia disappeared they say Donnie used her phone to make a highly suspicious call he calls on that
00:19:22
cell phone the Chattanooga Singles Line he calls it dating yes Chattanooga singles Live While Donnie was apparently
00:19:29
seeking a new love interest investigators say he couldn't seem to keep his story straight about his old
00:19:37
love Marsha she took a camper and moved to Townsend Tennessee on to Florida gone
00:19:44
out west to work as a missionary every time somebody asked what happened to Marsha it's something different they
00:19:49
were all lies if Marcia had left investigators were struck by what she had left behind
00:19:56
Oliver clothes her shoes documents important to her the baby book that her mother compiled for her brushes
00:20:02
toothbrushes all that's still in the house she left her car importantly she left her house
00:20:08
the one her parents had built for her that doesn't make sense if Tony Brantley did kill his wife they say a look at the
00:20:17
family finances May provide a motive come on played the fifth he was financially
00:20:25
supported by his wife they say Donny's failing business franchise was draining Marsha's inheritance she would have cut
00:20:33
him off from the money what was the state of their marriage in those last months prior to Marsha's disappearance
00:20:40
there was a little bit of tension obviously with the money problems and investigators soon Unearthed phone
00:20:47
records that revealed Donnie Brantley had begun calling an ex-girlfriend within days after Marcia disappeared you
00:20:56
know Stephanie Richardson yes okay who is Stephanie Richards when I played the fifth Lee Davis is Donnie
00:21:10
brantley's attorney there was no affair with Donnie while Donnie was married to Marcia There Was An Intimate
00:21:16
relationship that started after Marcia left and there was other suspicious Behavior
00:21:24
authorities discovered that just hours after investigator hunt had interviewed him Donnie went to a pawn shop and sold
00:21:32
a number of Marsha's possessions including 14 karat gold cross a Figaro necklace a Figaro Bracelet a herringbone
00:21:40
necklace and a Toshiba laptop and there was something else Marcia left behind that friends and families say she
00:21:49
valued more than all the material possessions in the world Marcia loved her dogs they were her kids would she
00:21:56
have ever left that house without her dog no no never in March of 2010 authorities asked
00:22:04
Donnie Brantley to take a polygraph test surprisingly he accepts how does he do fails it
00:22:12
fails it flying colors then during that 2013 videotaped deposition Donnie refused to answer
00:22:22
or said he couldn't recall I don't recall more than 100 times are there other items of hers which you
00:22:31
sold when she disappeared [Music] that performance combined with circumstantial evidence helped convince
00:22:46
police in August of 2013 to arrest Donnie Brantley and charge him with the murder of his wife Donnie Brantley is
00:22:54
now an inmate at the Bradley County Jail being held on a half million dollar bond
00:22:59
for the first degree murder of his wife Marsha but after seven months behind bars Donnie is freed when then
00:23:05
prosecutor Steve bebb decides he doesn't have enough evidence yet and drops the charges the family had told law
00:23:14
enforcement they didn't feel good about going forward with it at this time and they wanted to try to get more evidence
00:23:19
we didn't think that it was time yet because you get one shot at this right right
00:23:24
I was interested in from the very beginning months later newly elected prosecutor Steve Crump focuses his legal
00:23:31
sights on Donnie Brantley but it would take another two years to arrest and recharge him four cars pulled up and
00:23:40
told him to get on the ground so it was pretty traumatizing finally in February of 2018 nearly nine years after
00:23:49
Marcia Brantley disappeared her husband's murder trial is scheduled to begin you're convinced you've got the right
00:23:57
man no doubt the things that he did things he said all Point toward a guilty man
00:24:08
for more of Donnie brantley's video deposition go to Facebook at 48 hours how big a case is this among people here
00:24:26
I think it's pretty big for the simple fact that this doesn't happen here every day people don't just disappear and not
00:24:33
be seen for nine years Zach Pike and David Shoemaker of the Bradley County Sheriff's Office say as
00:24:40
Cleveland Tennessee natives the Brantley case hits them close to home in some ways is this personal for you
00:24:48
absolutely been many mounts I haven't slept I wonder where Marsha is we're actually
00:24:55
not going to be able to answer any questions there's no proof that Donnie Brantley murdered his wife Marsha
00:25:02
I've asked them Point Blank if Donnie is responsible as you suggest tell me how he did it Donnie brantley's lawyers Lee
00:25:10
Davis and Jenny parks for now say their client should never have been charged with murder once let alone twice law
00:25:19
enforcement had tunnel vision and they had tunnel vision that led directly to Donnie Brantley and the rest of it they
00:25:27
just ignored who murdered Marcia Brantley Donnie Brantley you say the same I say the same where at
00:25:35
her house at their house no proof of a crime scene no proof of a body or an autopsy is there a witness in this case
00:25:43
no there's no trace evidence there's no blood no fingerprints no DNA no fiber analysis what proof is there that she's
00:25:53
in fact dead he'll argue at trial that this case is actually about a nine-year-old marriage that because of
00:26:00
financial problem may have reached a Breaking Point in June 2009. she she told Donnie that she needed some
00:26:08
time to herself in time to think which is why Davis says it's ridiculous to argue Donny's failure to report Marsha
00:26:16
missing is suspicious when your wife tells you that she's leaving the marriage you don't call the police or
00:26:23
9-1-1 she would never have left her family she would never have left her home she would never lift her friends
00:26:31
and just disappeared and contacted no one remember her phone never left the house he's using her phone after he's
00:26:39
told law enforcement that she took it yes Davis says that certainly doesn't help
00:26:45
Donnie but it shouldn't hurt him either he lied about her cell phone and that is
00:26:51
something that has complicated the case there is a huge world of difference between somebody lies about a cell phone
00:26:56
and proof of a first-degree murder should it hurt the defense that Marcia left many of her belongings behind even
00:27:05
if Donnie pawned some of them Davis says he needed cash but left most of her things alone because he figured
00:27:12
she'd one day come back to get them including her beloved dogs let's talk about the dog issue if you
00:27:21
believe that Marsha was murdered he would say she would never leave the dogs behind if you look at from the lens of
00:27:27
Marsha was troubled and depressed or not sure what she was going to do the one thing she wouldn't do is take the dogs
00:27:33
with her she'd make sure she left the dogs with somebody who would take care of them no matter what and that's Donnie
00:27:39
they got those dogs together they were their dogs they weren't just hers and there was one thing Marcia definitely
00:27:46
didn't leave behind Davis says she took with her a large amount of money which was her money a wad of cash they kept
00:27:55
hidden in the attic and how much money we talking about probably talking between 100 and 110 000 Davis says all
00:28:02
that money could have been Marsha's gateway to a new life away from her husband and Cleveland Tennessee
00:28:09
Donny's lawyers also claim that all those stories he told about where his wife may have gone were actually
00:28:16
suggestions once he realized she truly was missing in the state of Tennessee there are 283 missing persons cases open
00:28:26
right now though a Civil Court ruled that Marcia is deceased her name can still be found on the national missing
00:28:34
persons website there's one for Marcia Brantley right now that's open listing her as a missing person not a murder
00:28:43
person not a person who they suspect has been murdered by her husband she's a smart woman who left for reasons of her
00:28:51
own she was always self-assured and was a leader type personality but a couple of months before Marcia disappeared
00:28:57
Reggie J says the writer's group was stunned by a bitter Email exchange with her she says ladies I just wanted to let
00:29:06
you all know that I'd be missing for some time without explaining when you read that what'd you think I was mad
00:29:12
I thought how dare you do that to us she writes no one in the group is responsible for my M.I.A missing in
00:29:19
action status I merely said I'd be missing at that point I truly did think to myself immediately did Marcia write
00:29:28
that who'd you think wrote it Donnie but neither side in the legal case agrees with her the defense says Marcia wrote
00:29:37
the email because she was about to leave town she was separating herself from those relationships that was closest to
00:29:44
her the prosecution says she only sent it because she planned to quit her writing group and the email itself
00:29:51
proves she wasn't actually going anywhere later in that email she says but you all will see me around Cleveland
00:29:59
is a small town we'll certainly run into one another Reggie and Nancy were bewildered and concerned they remembered
00:30:06
around the time of the emails Marcia who had suddenly lost a lot of weight said something that now seemed ominous and
00:30:15
she just made the comment I've been so depressed that I could hardly get off the couch and I'd remember doing sort of
00:30:20
a double take looking and like Marsha are you okay I think that there was a whole lot going on with Marcia that she
00:30:26
didn't tell anyone even the people in her writing group if Marcia Brantley had a secret 48 Hours
00:30:34
contacted one of the only people she might have told Robin Torero is a former pharmacist who worked with doctors to
00:30:42
treat patients she specialized in hormone replacement therapy she first came in 2004 in the June of 2004. Torero
00:30:52
says Marcia was going through menopause and was having a tough time including night sweats and mood swings it can be
00:31:00
very very severe and in the worst cases what can it lead to well I mean there have been cases known where women did
00:31:07
commit suicide during this time Torero worked with Marsha's Doctor Who prescribed medications for her right up
00:31:16
to the time she disappeared what concerned me more with Marsha was not what she shared but what she didn't
00:31:23
share that there was a lot more underneath there than she was willing to share with me
00:31:28
Torero's chart notes show Marsha repeatedly reported feeling depressed including this passage one month before
00:31:37
she disappeared on May 1st 2009 patient has been off of hormones since April the
00:31:44
12th was having severe depression so Marcia said to you she was experiencing severe
00:31:52
depression yes it was underlined severe and what are the last notes that you have written
00:32:00
on 5 18 she was having mood swings sleep less she was just like this up and down
00:32:09
you have a woman describes herself as being severely depressed those things were disclosed in 2010 to law
00:32:18
enforcement and from all I can tell they've never been investigated there was no significant mental illness I
00:32:25
never thought that that was the real answer State investigators have closed a Cleveland Pharmacy in 2015 the Tennessee
00:32:32
Board of Pharmacy revoked Robin Torero's license for unprofessional conduct unrelated to Marsha's treatment she was
00:32:41
never charged with a crime oh the Places You'll Go by Dr Seuss what do you think
00:32:47
happened to Marcia Brantley I wish I knew I really have no idea did you ever just look him in the eye
00:32:55
daughter to father say Dad did you do this did you kill her I did not I knew he didn't she's gone
00:33:05
she's dead well he's disposed of her body very well I know that now after nine long years a
00:33:14
jury will hear both sides of Marcia brantley's mysterious disappearance it's got to be done exactly right
00:33:23
we don't have any room for Eric [Music] foreign County Cold Case from nearly a decade
00:33:43
ago adds to trial next week but just two days before Donnie brantley's murder trial is set to begin
00:33:51
I've heard you have an announcement to make prosecutor Steve Crump the man who four years earlier promised Marcia
00:33:59
brantley's Family Justice gives 48 Hours some shocking news we just met with the
00:34:05
family and we told them that we're probably going to be dismissing this case on Monday
00:34:09
whoa whoa you're going to dismiss this murder case yes why this is an unusual case
00:34:19
we're afraid the judge will enter a judgment of acquittal because we can't prove
00:34:24
that Marcia Brantley was murdered you only get one shot Crump fears the jury would never get a chance to decide
00:34:32
on guilt or innocence that the judge would rule there just isn't enough evidence to go on and throw the case out
00:34:40
to be charged with murder dropped charged with murder and dropped again I'm sorry I just feel like there's some
00:34:49
incompetence here sure well and I I can appreciate that and my view of what Donnie Brantley did to Marsha Brantley
00:34:56
hasn't changed I don't believe we have the wrong guy I don't believe we have the wrong set of
00:35:02
facts this is a legal decision one that is made as a matter of trial strategy Crump stands by what he's done maybe I
00:35:12
should have done it earlier maybe I should have seen this sooner or maybe you're right maybe it was
00:35:16
incompetence I'll never stop self-evaluating but no matter what the outcome is I better
00:35:23
always do the right thing hey Kelly hello I have some rather startling news to tell you there will
00:35:31
not be a trial are you serious that's terrible that's terrible [Music] February 5th 2018 Court convenes to make
00:35:46
it official hey Zach it's kind of a sad day for you absolutely that's him that's Bradley
00:35:54
Donnie can I just ask one thing what's going through your mind after all you've gone through this is such a A Day of
00:35:59
Victory for you this is a state of Tennessee versus Mr Brantley uh General uh would you like to
00:36:13
approach and do you have a motion to make yes your honor I've made the decision on Saturdays
00:36:19
[Music] nearly 10 years after Marcia's disappearance it takes a judge just 10 minutes to dismiss the case against
00:36:30
Donnie Brantley yet again at this time Mr Brantley is free to go [Music] for Donny a second Victory I'd like to
00:36:41
thank the judge for dismissing the charges I'd also like to thank my family for all their support during this
00:36:48
extremely stressful period I look forward to putting this difficult time behind me
00:36:57
for Marsha's family a second devastating blow in court I felt like life had been
00:37:04
squeezed out of me my family is crushed but tomorrow's a new day this isn't the end
00:37:15
later that month the judge orders Donny's record of criminal charges in Bradley County to be erased
00:37:23
and Steve Crump does something we found remarkable so this is from the case File
00:37:29
it is and this is an extraordinary thing because generally you don't get to see this pre-trial that's right
00:37:36
with Detective Pike guarding the evidence Crump showed 48 Hours what a jury never got to see
00:37:43
he hopes that by showing the evidence a viewer may remember something important and call in a tip what are you holding
00:37:50
in your hand this is a receipt for a torch kit for a welder receipts for items Donnie bought around the time
00:38:00
Marcia disappeared including duct tape and plastic sheeting the man runs a home repair business we believe that all of
00:38:09
these receipts represent preparations for disposing of Marcia Brantley disposing of her body yes correct what
00:38:16
do we have here a greeting card a greeting card he says Donnie hand delivered to that ex-girlfriend he'd
00:38:24
been calling this was delivered we believe the day after Marcia Brantley disappeared and what did Donnie write on
00:38:29
the inside of this card hi girl with two exclamation points things are better for me now call me if
00:38:36
you can with his number you know how hard got Stephanie Richardson's mailbox on the morning of June the 3rd 2009
00:38:50
in your handwriting when I played the fifth it provides at least important motive
00:38:58
there's another woman we wanted to meet that other woman we've decided to drive out to her neighborhood
00:39:06
to try to speak to her [Music] I'm going to go up to the door and knock and see if Stephanie is home
00:39:24
[Music] Tiffany Richardson is now married hey Stephanie hi how are you I'm Peter Van
00:39:33
Sant with CBS News 48 hours it's really nice to meet you she disagrees with the prosecutor's interpretation of the card
00:39:40
I'm sorry they're stretching things Stephanie says she did date Donnie but not while Marcia was in his life the
00:39:48
prosecutors claiming that there was an affair that's not true I would love to ask you
00:39:55
just a few questions about that would you be no you have to understand this is my life for 10 years I don't want to
00:40:03
deal with this anymore [Music] Donnie Brantley has gone back home to Georgia where he's spending time with a
00:40:13
new love interest and his grandchildren too getting to see that grandfather's side of him is just a whole other very
00:40:21
special side what I want people to know is how loving kind thoughtful and how hard working he
00:40:29
is despite the prosecution's repeated failure to prove Donnie Brantley committed a murder or even that a murder
00:40:38
was committed they pledged to work harder to one day bring the Brantley case back to court I've been very plain
00:40:47
that we're not going to stop and so whatever he feels relief or whatever you may feel I wouldn't get accustomed to it
00:40:59
we hope it helps back in Cleveland for writing group member Nancy Grill believes Marcia's story may have one
00:41:08
last dramatic chapter I'm probably the only person in the world that doesn't really truly believe that
00:41:15
Marsha is dead what do you believe that one day Marsha Brantley may re-emerge I think it's a possibility
00:41:29
but sadly Marsha's family thinks Nancy's Hope is pure fiction oh yeah think about
00:41:36
her every day can we get her back can we layer to rest beside her mother and father
00:41:48
our family has a hole there that can't be replaced and we will do everything we can to find her
00:41:57
and we won't give up foreign a tip contact the Bradley County Sheriff's Office at 423-728-7336
00:42:12
to see more of the evidence go to 48hours.com I was 10 years old the phone rang something was wrong very wrong
00:42:38
my grandmother she was dead and not just dead murdered this is knock knock the unsolved murders of Betty Jones and
00:42:46
Catherine Crigler what was done in that house was as bad as anything Jack the Ripper ever did
00:42:55
Sergeant Lott is no ordinary police officer they developed a DNA facial recognition
00:43:03
of the Killer now I know what you look like I'm Gonna Get You never in a million years did I think
00:43:13
that we would get answers so quickly CBS News original reporting