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tonight
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a bizarre death That Shook San Francisco
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I've never seen anything like it
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everybody who saw it was in shock the
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accused two celebrated attorneys the
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accompli two dangerous convicts the
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weapons two huge dogs with the strength
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to kill these dogs when their blood gets
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heated they're not coming back that's a
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horrible way to die and a show trial
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full of surprises she's trying to
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protect Miss Whipple from the jaws of
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this berserk Beast I think it was a
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Confluence of two of the meanest lawyers
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around and two of the meanest prisoners
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around and two of the meanest dogs
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around Unleashed margerie noler and
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Robert Noel next on mug shots
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[Music]
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[Music]
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at 400 p.m. on January 26th 2001 Diane
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Whipple a 33-year-old college lacrosse C
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coach entered her apartment building in
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the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San
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Francisco
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with grocery bags in tow and plans to
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make dinner Whipple rode the elevator to
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the sixth floor and slid her key into
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the lock of her apartment door in
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moments she would be fighting for her
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life 911 yes I'm just arrest please send
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police to 2398
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Pacific Avenue Corner Filmore we have
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two
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rampaging out in the hall at 4:05 an
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elderly neighbor alerted by barking and
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screaming in the hallway peered through
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her peephole before calling 911
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please hurry I hear her screaming and I
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don't dare open the door these dogs are
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ferocious Bane the male and Hera the
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female were rare praa Canarios massive
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animals weighing more than 110 lb each
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and Bane was attacking Diane Whipple
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tearing her clothes from her body and
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biting her repeatedly
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Police Inspector Sydney laws and her
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partner were the first to arrive on the
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sixth floor minutes later I see a dog
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come from my left and go to the right as
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my partner gets out of the elevator she
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announces that uh we have a victim with
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multiple dog bites we don't see anything
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until we see Marjorie noler appear out
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of her apartment with bloody clothes
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bloody hair almost like a ghost S me I
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mean it felt like I was in a stepen King
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movie Diane Whipple had not been alone
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in the hallway the victim's neighbor
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marjerie noler who owned the dogs with
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her husband had seen everything she
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would later tell police a harrowing tale
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of a well behaved animal gone berserk
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that had dragged her down the hallway
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and of her attempt to Shield Whipple
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from Bane with her own body judging by
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the state of the hall that attempt had
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failed it was horrifying
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it was uh I've never seen anything like
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it
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it's still um when I think about it it
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bothers me still
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Sergeant Paul Morris was among the swarm
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of police Animal Control Officers and
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paramedics who responded to the scene
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after the paramedics took her away and
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looking down the hall and seeing the
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keys in the door that was just it was
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wrenching it was heart-wrenching
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as the dogs were captured by Animal
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Control Officers the victim was rushed
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to San Francisco General Hospital
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doctors operated to repair her crushed
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windpipe and other wounds but Diane
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Whipple had lost a third of her blood
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and at 9:00 that night she lapsed into
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cardiac arrest and died Whipple's best
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friend Sher derbo got the call I had
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trouble hearing cuz I was at a concert
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and I thought she said Dian was hit by a
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car so I of course collapsed and was
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hysterical and only found out probably
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15 minutes after my breakdown that it
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was a dog I just I it was so surreal to
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me I could not believe that that had
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happened not to Diane
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the people of San Francisco couldn't
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believe it either the Bay City is a
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dog's Paradise with few attacks and no
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human fatalities till now but these were
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no ordinary dogs or ordinary owners they
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have to be from a different planet
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they're not human neither one of them
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ever expressed any remorse they were
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just like Stone they were thinking about
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uh being lawyers I'm sure margerie noler
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and her husband Robert Noel were two
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enigmatic attorneys who seemed to have
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little money few friends and a belief
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that they and their dogs could do no
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wrong why did this incident that has
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brought us here happen I can't explain
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it I wasn't there for the incident I
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came for the aftermath
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the behavior was was totally out of
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character for either one of them but few
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seem to be buying their story including
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Sergeant Morse Edward 1104
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I really wanted to see if I could find
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out what really had happened there when
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I walked in the door one of the tenants
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came up and said man this isn't the
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first time we've had a problem with
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these dogs and so I got a statement from
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him and
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uh and from that point on it was like
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the the floodgates opened people came
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out of the woodwork to tell us hey that
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dog tried to bite me hey that dog leaped
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at my child hey one of those dogs bit me
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as I was trying to get out of the
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elevator a tragic accident or a terrible
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crime San Francisco's district attorney
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Terrence henin assigned prosecutors Jim
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hammer and Kimberly gilfoil Nome to the
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case my first thought was what a
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terrible tragedy and I've said that
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because until you look at the facts
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behind it which is what gives rise to
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criminal responsibility on its surface
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it looks like a terrible terrible
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tragedy once you hear about the 34 prior
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incident you realize what a crime and in
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fact what a murder people were
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intimidated you people did not come out
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of their Apartments when they heard Nola
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and Noel in the hallway with the dogs
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they didn't want to risk it because they
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knew that something very bad could
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happen a criminal investigation into the
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dog mauling death of Diane Whipple was
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soon underway at its Center two
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attorneys who had once traded success
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for obscurity marjerie noler and Robert
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Noel when mug shots continues
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the investigation into the death of
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Diane Whipple focused on margerie noler
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and Robert noell two lawyers who had
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once climbed San Francisco social ladder
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and had seemed unlikely to Fall From
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Grace
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Marjorie noler grew up far away from the
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bay area in the leafy Midwood section of
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Brooklyn New York
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well Midwood is a very close knitted
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community and it's a quiet neighborhood
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she lived with her parents here she was
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a very friendly girl margerie was the
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adopted daughter of David noler a
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dentist and his wife Harriet a beauty
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queen who was named Miss Brooklyn in
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1935
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she was born June 20th 1955
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she was a very smart little girl she
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walked when she was very young she
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talked when she was very young she was
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always a daddy's little girl uh she was
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very happy she was happy with us she was
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happy in school
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Marjorie attended nearby Midwood High
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then Brooklyn College where she was a
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presidential scholar who dreamed of
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becoming a lawyer she applied to I'd say
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about six schools and they were all in
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California because when she was a young
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girl we took her to California and she
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said this is where I'm ending up so she
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ended up at McGeorge University wasn't
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that it no MC George School of Law of
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law that's where she ended up and that's
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where she graduated Marjorie noler
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married and got a job as a pargal at a
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law firm in San Francisco in 1987 she
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was assigned to a case with a seasoned
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lawyer 14 years her senior named Robert
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Noel
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Noel grew up near Baltimore where he
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graduated from Law School in 1967
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he rose through the ranks of the justice
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department eventually becoming an
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assistant us attorney in San Diego in
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1985 he left his job his wife of 23
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years and his three children and moved
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to San Francisco
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he was already married for the second
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time when he met met marjerie noler he
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quickly took the daddy's little girl
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from Brooklyn under his wing I had a lot
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of respect for Robert and uh I thought
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he was teaching her too because he was
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sort of a scholar
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in the field and I think she learned a
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lot from him marjorie's quiet manner
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seemed to compliment Robert's dominating
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personality and before long there was a
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mutual attraction there's no doubt that
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they loved each other they did the same
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things they thought the same way so it
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was it was a match made in heaven the
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pair divorced their spouses and quickly
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married the following year they started
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their own law practice out of their
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apartment the two lawyers in love had
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freedom and money
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they went to the Opera of the symphony
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they traveled
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uh it seems to be they went at a
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different place every other weekend
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if I I saw margorie noler in Pacific
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Heights where she frequently shopped she
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would look exactly the same as any other
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young professional businesswoman Mary
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Karen fippinger is a San Francisco
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socialite who served with margerie noler
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on the board of The Little Gym Club the
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city's most prestigious charity my
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impression of margorie noler was that
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she was a caring
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and uh very sympathetic person to other
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people in need Robert and margorie
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success only allowed them to pursue
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their shared interest in volunteerism
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and their pro bono legal work on behalf
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of the homeless and AIDS patients earn
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them praise throughout the city
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in 1994 the husband and wife attorneys
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accepted a case that would change
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everything their client was a
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correctional officer with a grievance
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against the California Department of
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Corrections similar cases followed soon
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they were representing not only
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correctional officers but inmates whose
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life stories found a sympathetic
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audience in marjerie noler and Robert
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Noel the lawyers began helping some of
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their incarcerated clients for free and
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their income suffered she had clothes
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made at uh Neiman Marcus he brought her
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bought her jewelry and then all of a
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sudden everything came to a standstill
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it's like they needed financial help I
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don't know what he spent his money on
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noler and Noel spent more time visiting
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prisons like like Pelican Bay
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California's maximum security lockup for
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Dangerous criminals the married lawyers
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had found a new calling it wasn't like
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an instant overnight change with these
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people Aphrodite Jones is a crime writer
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who has been following the case it was a
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long-term
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happened over a period of a few years
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thing in which they distan themselves
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from society and and C certainly San
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Francisco Society but distan themselves
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from society period by getting
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themselves wrapped up in the prison
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world the pair stopped attending the
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symphony and gradually gave up their
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charity work then in 1997 Robert Noel
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and marjerie noler met an inmate who
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would have a profound effect on both of
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them
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the dangerous prisoner who would
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complete their family when mugshots
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continues
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[Music]
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by 1997 attorneys margorie noler and
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Robert noell had dropped out of San
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Francisco society and were providing
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legal counsel to correctional officers
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and prisoners at Pelican Bay in Northern
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California it was here that a chance
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meeting with a violent inmate would
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prove to be a life-changing encounter
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Devin Hawks is a special investigator
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for the California Department of
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Corrections
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Paul Schneider met Robert Noel and Mar
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marer noler um threw another case that
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they were working up at Pelican Bay my
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understanding is they became very
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impressed by him 40-year-old Paul
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cornfed Schneider has a rap sheet that
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confirms his standing as the most
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dangerous inmate in California
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originally imprisoned in 1983 for
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robbery he is now serving life for
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stabbing a lawyer in court with a weapon
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he made in his cell
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Schneider is also a prominent member of
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the Aran Brotherhood a white supremacist
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prison gang still even prison officials
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admit cornfed can be very charismatic
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in all my dealings with him he's always
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been professional and upfront even with
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the prison staff he's usually pretty
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respectful um however if we are in the
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way I don't think any of us doubt that
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he would do something to remove us from
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his potential to escape
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the two prison lawyers were drawn to
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Schneider's charm they began a pen pal
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friendship and discovered they had much
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in common all three were fans of JRR
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tolken fantasies and big dogs Schneider
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a jailhouse artist sent noler and Noel
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drawings incorporating both themes soon
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the attorneys were smitten
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I believe that Noel and noler became
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Enchanted by Mr Schneider
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and got to know him from a different
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point of view than perhaps the rest of
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us knew their enchantment grew deep in
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letters Noel referred to their
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relationship as the Triad and at least
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one letter alluded to unrequited sexual
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fantasies
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I wanted to thank you for the thoughts
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expressed about your feelings about how
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comfortable you would feel about
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Marjorie and I inhabiting your body and
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mind
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there were overtones in the letter that
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there could have been a romantic
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relationship Mr Schneider was still
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separated
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from any physical contact because he was
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behind glass during those visits they
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are I believe in love with Paul
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Schneider both of them in a sexual sense
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of every sense of the word noler and
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Noel were not the first Outsiders to get
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personal with Paul Schneider I don't
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know what would make some of the
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individuals fall in love with Mr
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Schneider I I wouldn't even venture to
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to guess but I know that it has happened
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in several occasions and in each of
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those occasions he ends up using them to
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participate in his criminal Enterprise
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in 1997 Schneider discovered a new
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scheme in the pages of dog fancy
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magazine buying breeding and selling
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guard dogs Schneider's cellmate and
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fellow Aryan Brotherhood member Dale
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bretches a convicted murderer became his
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partner and other inmates contributed
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the startup dollars
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Schneider also came up with a name for
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his fledgling Enterprise doggo War
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kennels
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although prison rules prohibit inmates
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from starting a business Schneider and
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bretches Drew up a business plan with a
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focus on a particular breed the praa
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Canario a canine from the Canary Islands
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with the perfect temperament to be a
00:16:52
guard dog come on over here come here
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sit
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sit good boy Richard Kelly has bred
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nearly 400 praa Canarios from his home
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in New Jersey they're an alpha breed uh
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they're a dominant dog they will stand
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their ground they're very defensive very
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territorial so should a threat come at
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me or a family member or an invasion of
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of his territory uh he'll stand and
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scope it out trying to determine is it a
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real threat and if it continues to come
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then I guarantee you they'll react pra
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Canario can react with size and strength
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good boy we have some that are up to 150
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lb that's a lot of potential power they
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are extremely muscled very athletic Big
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Bone dogs okay they have a good gripping
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power they're impervious to pain pain
00:17:44
towels is exceptionally high and that's
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all the things the attributes that make
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him a good Guardian Pressa Canario
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experts also consider the breed to be
00:17:53
stable and family friendly they're
00:17:55
excellent companion they love children
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they love the family they they are wary
00:17:59
of strangers but once they're introduced
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the dog will accept them probably lick
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them and love them to death
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from his cell at Pelican Bay Paul
00:18:09
Schneider chose kennels in Chicago and
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Ohio and instructed prison missionary
00:18:14
Janet kums another of his outside
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friends to start buying pra Canarios
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kums used four dogs to breed four more
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on her Farm in Northern California
00:18:28
dog o War kennels was now a reality but
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there were immediate problems the dogs
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had little obedience training inadequate
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food and no facilities to separate them
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these dogs were allowed to run as a pack
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on a farm and that they literally killed
00:18:45
all the livestock probably for food for
00:18:48
no other purpose but then once the taste
00:18:49
of blood then actually they were
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reverted back to the their primitive
00:18:54
mode the woman that was in control of
00:18:56
that became frightened and chained them
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up to the
00:18:59
restricted their movement that affects
00:19:01
the dog psyche still cornfed Schneider
00:19:04
thought the dogs were not Tough Enough
00:19:06
and in late 1999 he asked Marjorie noler
00:19:10
and Robert Noel for help Mr uh Noel and
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miss noler being attorneys were asked by
00:19:17
Schneider to intercede when they did not
00:19:20
like the way that Miss kums was raising
00:19:23
the dogs in fact the term that she used
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with me is that Schneider did not want
00:19:28
wussy dogs
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and that goes to show what kind of dogs
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he was looking for these mean aggressive
00:19:36
dogs noler and Noel went to court to get
00:19:39
control of the eight pra Canarios and in
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April of 2000 the husband and wife
00:19:44
lawyers retrieved the dogs from Janet
00:19:46
kums according to authorities six of the
00:19:49
dogs were delivered to Associates of the
00:19:51
Aryan Brotherhood in Los Angeles noler
00:19:54
and Noel took custody of two Bane and
00:19:58
Hera
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I believe that she didn't know what she
00:20:01
had what they had in their possession
00:20:04
Bane and Hera make their mark on the
00:20:06
neighborhood and the aftermath of the
00:20:09
attack when mugshots returns
00:20:18
in April of 2000 marjerie noler and
00:20:22
Robert Noel had acquired two dogs from
00:20:24
an illegal breeding business run by
00:20:26
Prison inmate cornfed schne
00:20:29
it's absolutely clear that they were
00:20:31
both 100% involved not just in these
00:20:34
dogs but in this broader operation
00:20:35
called dog of war this this breeding
00:20:38
business they didn't want happy puppies
00:20:40
they didn't want golden retrievers noler
00:20:42
and Noel's new roommates Bane and Hera
00:20:45
were adult Pressa Canarios with little
00:20:48
obedience training and a history of
00:20:50
abuse by the time they got the dogs the
00:20:53
dogs are already uh mature it's a little
00:20:55
tough to to then uh work with a mature
00:20:58
to a dog that's already had an imprint
00:21:00
of being trained to do something other
00:21:02
than uh you know a safe environment the
00:21:06
couple had hired a veterinarian to
00:21:08
examine the dogs before their arrival in
00:21:10
San Francisco after the exam the vet
00:21:13
wrote a letter to the attorneys
00:21:15
concerned about the dog's behavior
00:21:18
these dogs are huge they have had no
00:21:21
training or discipline of any sort these
00:21:24
animals would be a liability in any
00:21:27
household
00:21:28
but noler and Noel ignored the warning
00:21:31
and soon the forsome was a fixture on
00:21:33
the streets of Pacific Heights
00:21:37
while Bane and Hera often appeared docel
00:21:39
they sometimes behaved aggressively in
00:21:41
public places like the nearby dog run
00:21:47
Kathy Brooks met margerie noler with
00:21:49
Hera and tried to pet the dog and
00:21:52
everything was fine I wasn't worried
00:21:54
until she had her muzzle right near my
00:21:56
neck and stopped sniffing
00:21:59
and at that point I kind of looked up at
00:22:00
her and she had squared her chest off
00:22:03
and her shoulders were rolled forward
00:22:05
and her ears were flat back against her
00:22:07
head she her eyes had narrowed and her
00:22:09
tail was straight out behind her clearly
00:22:11
a very aggressive aggressive stance so I
00:22:14
slowly withdrew my hand and I slowly
00:22:16
leaned back and backed away and stood up
00:22:20
Brooks and her dog Archie met Robert
00:22:22
Noel with Bane a few weeks later and
00:22:25
Noel warned her that his dog was not
00:22:27
friendly
00:22:29
I said well you know look you're nearing
00:22:31
the offleash area of the park you've got
00:22:33
a dog in a harness he looked at me and
00:22:35
he said I can walk my dog wherever I
00:22:37
godamn well please this was a a very
00:22:40
aggressive guy who clearly didn't care
00:22:42
that he had an aggressive dog who
00:22:43
clearly didn't care about anyone else's
00:22:45
safety they got off on the fact that I
00:22:47
think their dogs intimidated people on
00:22:49
January 11th 2001 Robert Noel wrote a
00:22:53
letter to Paul Schneider as soon as the
00:22:55
door opens at 6 one of our newer female
00:22:58
neighbors a timorous little mousy blonde
00:23:01
who weighs less than Hera is met by the
00:23:04
dynamic duo exiting and almost has a
00:23:07
coronary the muts show only passing
00:23:10
interest as she gets in and goes down
00:23:13
the blonde was Diane Whipple and 15 days
00:23:17
later she would be mauled to death by
00:23:19
Bane and Hera
00:23:24
on January 29th 3 days after the bizaar
00:23:28
attack the people of San Francisco
00:23:31
received more strange news Marjorie
00:23:34
noler and Robert Noel had finalized an
00:23:37
adoption and Paul cornfed Schneider was
00:23:40
now legally their son
00:23:43
[Music]
00:23:45
I think they were living in another
00:23:46
world to be honest uh and they got uh um
00:23:51
swept up into this relationship with
00:23:54
these Aryan Brotherhood guys and the
00:23:56
dogs and the whole kind of cult aspects
00:24:00
to this thing and and really just got
00:24:02
way way off base
00:24:05
on January 31st Robert Noel circulated
00:24:08
an 18-page letter to the local press
00:24:11
threatening the district attorney and
00:24:13
suggesting that Dian Whipple may have
00:24:15
been to blame for her own death Miss
00:24:18
Whipple may have been wearing a
00:24:19
pheromone based cosmetic or scent or
00:24:22
that as a serious athlete she may have
00:24:24
been a user of steroids which could have
00:24:27
triggered the initial interest of ban
00:24:29
they told us that they'd never do a day
00:24:32
in you know jail that we weren't going
00:24:34
to get anywhere with the indictment they
00:24:35
were very boastful and very arrogant
00:24:37
about it is the Department of animal
00:24:39
control ready to proceed yes we are Bane
00:24:42
had been killed by lethal injection
00:24:44
shortly after the attack two weeks later
00:24:47
a hearing was held in a San Francisco
00:24:49
Court to decide the fate of Hera several
00:24:52
witnesses to the dog's past Behavior
00:24:54
attended as I went around them um the
00:24:58
dog Hara bit me um at which time I
00:25:02
jumped away um turned around and said
00:25:05
hey your dog just bit me I immediately
00:25:08
looked up and I see these two dogs
00:25:10
coming at me I mean very quickly
00:25:13
snarling I put down my mail I grabbed my
00:25:17
cart and just in time put it in front of
00:25:20
the dogs the dog lunged jumped on my dog
00:25:23
knocked it down got its mouth over the
00:25:26
back of my dog and uh looked to be
00:25:29
basically digging its teeth into its
00:25:30
back to break its back I suspect Robert
00:25:32
Noel and Marjorie noler then took the
00:25:35
stand claiming their dogs were nothing
00:25:37
more than overgrown house pets Hera and
00:25:40
Bane were not the least bit aggressive
00:25:42
he loved uh to lick people he licked me
00:25:45
all over he licked Marjorie all over um
00:25:48
very approachable just walk right up to
00:25:50
him Hara was the same way she's a
00:25:53
wonderful animal she's loving she's
00:25:55
caring um I ni name her a certified lick
00:25:59
therapist because when you're not
00:26:01
feeling well she knows it I believe that
00:26:04
Harold was trying to protect me from ban
00:26:08
by whatever action she did she was never
00:26:10
involved in the attack on Miss Whipple
00:26:11
she was barking hysterically in the
00:26:13
hallway
00:26:16
one week later Hera was ordered put to
00:26:19
death meanwhile a warrant search of
00:26:22
cornfed Schneider cell had yielded a
00:26:24
treasure Trove of personal letters from
00:26:26
his new parents for homicide prosecutor
00:26:30
Jim Hammer the letters proed that Noel
00:26:32
and noler knew their dogs were dangerous
00:26:36
one Saturday as I was going through
00:26:37
letters written by the defendants we
00:26:39
came across this letter where Mr noell
00:26:41
had mocked Diane Whipple weeks before
00:26:43
she died and called her a timorous mousy
00:26:46
blonde and how frightened she was in
00:26:48
that moment uh in light of the jury
00:26:50
instructions that cover murder I said
00:26:52
for the first time to myself this might
00:26:53
be a murder case they really did know
00:26:55
not just they knew they liked it so
00:26:57
that's kind of the point we reached when
00:26:59
we got up to the grand jury and gave
00:27:01
them the option whether or not to indict
00:27:03
for murder
00:27:05
on March 9th 2001 a grand jury convened
00:27:09
in San Francisco to assess the evidence
00:27:12
against Marjorie noler and Robert Noel 3
00:27:16
Days Later Diane Whipple's partner
00:27:18
Sharon Smith filed a wrongful death
00:27:20
lawsuit against the two attorneys
00:27:28
the lawsuit sparked Street
00:27:29
demonstrations by gay rights groups
00:27:32
eager to change a California law that
00:27:34
does not allow a same sex partner to sue
00:27:37
for wrongful death I just want to say um
00:27:40
I have always felt that you need to
00:27:43
stand up and fight for what you believe
00:27:45
is right and certainly this has only uh
00:27:47
furthered that conviction in my mind on
00:27:50
March 27th the district attorney
00:27:53
announced indictments marjerie noler and
00:27:56
Robert noell were indicted for
00:27:58
involuntary manslaughter and owning a
00:28:00
mischievous animal that kills and
00:28:03
marjerie noler alone was indicted for
00:28:05
second degree murder involuntary
00:28:08
manslaughter carries a penalty of 2 to 4
00:28:10
years in prison but second-degree murder
00:28:13
could put margerie noler behind bars for
00:28:16
the rest of her life
00:28:18
[Music]
00:28:19
I definitely believe she was guilty of
00:28:20
murder if I didn't believe that ethic I
00:28:22
never would have prosecuted that case
00:28:23
but it's really not that much different
00:28:24
I don't think than drunk driving or
00:28:26
firing a gun where you have repeat
00:28:28
repeat notice over and over and over
00:28:31
again of the danger and what you could
00:28:33
do to prevent the danger and you
00:28:34
basically say I don't care I'm going to
00:28:36
do it anyhow
00:28:38
California's first dog murder trial
00:28:40
begins when mugshots continues
00:28:44
[Music]
00:28:50
in March of 2001 margorie noler and
00:28:53
Robert Noel were indicted for multiple
00:28:56
crimes in the dog mauling death of Diane
00:28:58
Whipple the most severe second deegree
00:29:01
murder from margerie noler on March 27th
00:29:05
the pair were arrested at dinner and
00:29:07
taken into custody
00:29:10
with no money to make bail the husband
00:29:12
and wife attorneys sat in jail for
00:29:14
months pre-trial publicity forced a
00:29:17
change of venue and the trial was moved
00:29:20
to Los Angeles in January of 2002 a year
00:29:24
after Diane Whipple's death the state of
00:29:27
California versus margerie noler and
00:29:29
Robert Noel began in the midst of a
00:29:32
media frenzy all right please division
00:29:36
53 of the Los Angeles Superior Court is
00:29:38
now in session the honorable James
00:29:41
Warren judge presiding assistant
00:29:44
district attorney Jim Hammer spoke for
00:29:46
the prosecution the issues in this case
00:29:48
are what knowledge did they have if any
00:29:51
of the danger of the dogs of their
00:29:54
ability to control these dogs and to
00:29:56
protect other people and what did they
00:29:57
do Hammer explained the attack leading
00:30:00
the LA jury through police accounts and
00:30:03
crime scene photos so what kind of dogs
00:30:06
could do this what kind of dogs killed
00:30:08
Diane Whipple how were these dogs in San
00:30:10
Francisco in a crowded apartment
00:30:12
building in a small hallway these two
00:30:15
dogs were selected by two prisoners
00:30:19
at Pelican Bay State Prison the
00:30:21
prosecution presented the letters
00:30:23
written to Paul Schneider by noler and
00:30:25
Noel as evidence of the couple intimate
00:30:28
relationship with the inmate the Aran
00:30:31
Brotherhood and Dogg of War kennels this
00:30:34
is a page seized from Pelican Bay State
00:30:36
Prison a draft of a website that the
00:30:39
prisoners were preparing to sell and
00:30:42
Market these dogs that they were
00:30:43
breeding and raising look what it says
00:30:45
over to the left about Bane Warg
00:30:49
assassin
00:30:51
Bane
00:30:52
on the bottom right corner we've blown
00:30:54
up here sort of definition of Bane death
00:31:00
ruin
00:31:02
destruction the prosecution also
00:31:05
introduced their star Witnesses nearly
00:31:08
30 people who had seen Bane and hara's
00:31:10
aggressive behavior firsthand the
00:31:13
witness list included Janet kums Kathy
00:31:16
Brooks and even the victim Diane Whipple
00:31:19
Diane Whipple was killed on January 26
00:31:22
2001 by these two dogs but before she
00:31:25
died back in December 1st 2000 she
00:31:28
herself was bitten by one of the dogs
00:31:31
one of the dogs jumped up and bit her in
00:31:33
the hand it wasn't a serious bite she
00:31:37
had three small red marks in her hand
00:31:40
and you know what Robert Noel does after
00:31:42
that he just looked at her Jim Hammer
00:31:46
next focused on the defendant's own
00:31:48
words from Grand Jury testimony and
00:31:51
statements to the press in the grandury
00:31:53
testimony Miss noler compared Hera to to
00:31:58
a Chihuahua
00:32:00
Mr noell this is what he had to say this
00:32:02
is after Nan's dead Okay Bane was a
00:32:06
wonderful mut no he wasn't a vicious dog
00:32:10
but no Bane Bane had never shown any
00:32:14
signs of people aggression according to
00:32:18
Mr Noel he had no notice at all of any
00:32:22
danger by either dog the prosecutor also
00:32:26
took issue with margerie oler's account
00:32:28
of the attack and its aftermath margerie
00:32:31
noler testified to the grand jury that
00:32:33
she gave brief first aid to a Dian
00:32:35
Whipple and after she did that she put
00:32:38
both dogs away now what will the
00:32:39
evidence show on those claims by Miss
00:32:41
noler when the police ared the dogs
00:32:44
aren't secured one is still running
00:32:47
loose with Diane Whipple alone
00:32:52
and you know what else the evidence will
00:32:53
show that after margin erer went into
00:32:55
her apartment
00:32:57
she never never called 911 the climax of
00:33:00
the prosecution's opening was an
00:33:02
interview noler and Noel had given on
00:33:04
National Television before their arrest
00:33:07
Mr Noel had either of these dogs ever
00:33:09
exhibited any signs of aggression before
00:33:12
as far as aggression toward people no do
00:33:14
you think miss Noah that you bear any
00:33:16
responsibility at all for this attack
00:33:19
responsibility no uh why not you you
00:33:22
owned the dog you brought them into the
00:33:23
building you were unable to control them
00:33:25
why aren't you at all responsible I I
00:33:27
wouldn't say that I was unable to
00:33:29
control them and you couldn't stop the
00:33:31
dog from attacking Diane Whipple I
00:33:33
wouldn't say that it was an attack and I
00:33:35
did everything that it was humanly
00:33:37
possible to avoid the incident uh Miss
00:33:39
Ripple had ample opportunity to to move
00:33:42
into her apartment she was in her
00:33:44
apartment she could have just slamed the
00:33:45
door shut I would one thing is clear
00:33:47
from this video from the evidence
00:33:49
neither defendant shows any remorse for
00:33:53
what their dogs did defense attorney
00:33:55
Nedra Ruiz focused on the attack itself
00:33:58
casting marjerie noler as a hero
00:34:01
marjerie was yanking on the leash and
00:34:04
telling Bane to stop stop and yanking on
00:34:08
the leash and the harness to make him uh
00:34:11
go back to the apartment Bane
00:34:13
overpowered her and actually pulled
00:34:17
margorie off her feet and dragged her
00:34:20
down to where Miss Whipple was standing
00:34:23
by her now open apartment door margerie
00:34:27
was very concerned she had never uh been
00:34:31
in a situation where Bane had pulled her
00:34:34
off her feet she had never been in a
00:34:36
situation where uh Hara was barking
00:34:39
hysterically as Bane was jumping up on
00:34:41
someone Ruiz demonstrated how her client
00:34:45
had fallen on top of Diane Whipple while
00:34:47
pushing her away from the dogs and the
00:34:49
dog begins to bite Miss Whipple Miss
00:34:52
Whipple is flailing of course she's
00:34:54
terrified she's panicked as is margorie
00:34:57
and in in this flailing she flings an
00:35:00
arm up and gets uh contact with with
00:35:04
marjorie's face marjerie is stunned for
00:35:06
a second and sees
00:35:09
horrified the dog bite Miss Whipple on
00:35:12
the back of the neck Marjorie is
00:35:15
screaming
00:35:17
stop stop she's trying to get uh keep
00:35:21
her her her whole body around Miss
00:35:24
Whipple to protect Miss Whipple from the
00:35:26
jaws of this
00:35:28
uh berserk Beast the evidence will show
00:35:32
that Marjorie was screaming at the top
00:35:33
of her lungs and knew that someone would
00:35:36
call 911 was hoping that someone would
00:35:40
come to her Aid no one did
00:35:44
no one did
00:35:46
this picture was taken within an hour of
00:35:50
the incident this picture was taken
00:35:53
because it reflects the condition
00:35:59
of margerie noler
00:36:02
I know
00:36:05
you've seen terrible pictures of Diane
00:36:07
Whipple today
00:36:09
you've seen how Bane rent her flesh
00:36:14
but the evidence will not show
00:36:16
that Marjorie stood back and let that
00:36:20
horrible thing happen to that beautiful
00:36:22
girl
00:36:28
the trial of margorie noler and Robert
00:36:31
Noel lasted a month jury deliberations
00:36:34
began on March 19th 2002 with both sides
00:36:38
anticipating Victory the defense uh
00:36:41
feels that uh the jury has sufficient
00:36:44
facts before them to acquit marjerie and
00:36:47
Robert of uh any prior knowledge that
00:36:50
these dogs would seriously harm or kill
00:36:53
anyone I'm proud of everything we've
00:36:55
done in this case we've bowed to no
00:36:57
one's pressure we fought all along to
00:36:59
put on a fair case and now leave it up
00:37:01
to the jury to decide what the right
00:37:03
charges in this case are the verdict and
00:37:06
the aftermath nobody expected when
00:37:08
mugshots returns
00:37:15
[Music]
00:37:21
after a month-long trial the fate of dog
00:37:24
Mall defendants Marjorie noler and
00:37:26
Robert Noel was in in the hands of a
00:37:28
jury if convicted of murder noler faced
00:37:32
life in prison on March 21st the jury
00:37:35
announced it had reached verdicts on all
00:37:37
counts
00:37:39
verdict as to marjerie noler count two
00:37:42
we the jury in the Ed as the courtroom
00:37:45
waited for the murder verdict Noel and
00:37:47
noler were found guilty of the Lesser
00:37:49
charges of involuntary manslaughter and
00:37:52
owning a mischievous animal that kills
00:37:55
then the moment came for marer noler
00:37:58
verdict as to margerie noler count one
00:38:01
we the jury in the above entitled action
00:38:04
find the defendant margorie noler guilty
00:38:07
of the crime of Murder in the second
00:38:09
degree in violation of section when we
00:38:12
were out in the hall everybody said
00:38:14
she's not going to get it maybe
00:38:16
manslaughter she turned around to me and
00:38:18
she said I love you I really think the
00:38:21
murder 2 verdict was most appropriate
00:38:23
for margerie noler I mean we lost a life
00:38:27
we lost human being and um she should
00:38:30
not have had those dogs no one should
00:38:33
have had those dogs those dogs should
00:38:35
never have existed with this ladies and
00:38:37
gentleman of the jury uh you are excused
00:38:39
to the Jury Room this court is in recess
00:38:42
it's been a long 14 months
00:38:46
and uh a lot of that time was spent
00:38:48
focusing on this moment
00:38:50
so it's this a very emotional moment for
00:38:53
me um I always felt that this should be
00:38:57
be the outcome and I'm incredibly
00:39:00
grateful that it was the outcome if not
00:39:02
now when if not these defendants then
00:39:04
who and I think that was really the
00:39:06
question to this jury if 30 warnings
00:39:08
Aren't Enough is Dian Whipple just a
00:39:10
warning and uh this jury did Justice so
00:39:13
was I surprised not based on the facts
00:39:16
this was the right thing to do a murder
00:39:19
conviction is difficult that's the most
00:39:21
serious crime that we have Miss noler
00:39:24
could well spend the rest of her life in
00:39:26
prison
00:39:29
marjerie Nola's murder conviction was
00:39:31
the first of its kind in California but
00:39:33
her legal battle was far from over we
00:39:36
are ready to proceed at sentencing noler
00:39:40
appell at attorney Dennis Reen asked the
00:39:42
judge to throw out the murder conviction
00:39:45
due to a lack of evidence there is a
00:39:47
huge moral difference between doing an
00:39:50
act which might result in death and
00:39:52
doing an act which you intend to result
00:39:55
in death you intend to kill another
00:39:58
human being the difference between an
00:40:00
act which is dangerous and an act which
00:40:03
has a high probability of death is
00:40:06
enormous in this case we argued very
00:40:08
strenuously not only that margerie noler
00:40:12
didn't know that the dogs were likely to
00:40:14
kill in her own mind she didn't walk out
00:40:17
there saying these dogs are likely to
00:40:19
kill somebody today but that there was
00:40:21
no evidence that the dogs were likely to
00:40:24
kill them the sentencing was delayed for
00:40:26
10 days while Judge James Warren
00:40:28
pondered marjerie noler murder
00:40:30
conviction on June 17th he rendered a
00:40:34
shocking decision I believe
00:40:36
unfortunately Mr Noel miss noler that
00:40:38
you are the most despised couple in the
00:40:40
city I don't believe anybody likes you
00:40:43
uh I defy either defendant to stand up
00:40:46
and tell me they had no idea that those
00:40:48
dogs were going to hurt somebody one day
00:40:52
can they stand up and say that they knew
00:40:55
subjectively that these dog were going
00:40:57
to kill somebody that is the ultimate
00:41:00
question in the case on the state of the
00:41:02
evidence I cannot say as a matter of law
00:41:06
that she subjectively knew that her
00:41:09
conduct was such that a human being was
00:41:13
likely to die the court finds that the
00:41:16
evidence does not support it with those
00:41:19
words the murder conviction of margerie
00:41:21
noler was thrown out Jim Hammer
00:41:24
responded I Fe I fear I fear because
00:41:27
what you have done today and that's why
00:41:28
I'm going to ask you to reconsider it
00:41:30
that you will forever have robbed Sharon
00:41:32
Smith and Diane Whipple and everyone who
00:41:34
knew the woman and 12 jurors in Los
00:41:35
Angeles and 19 Grand jurors in San
00:41:37
Francisco and everyone in California
00:41:39
have a sense of justice I was shocked uh
00:41:42
because of what he himself had said
00:41:44
about the evidence I think judges are
00:41:46
often tempted to split the baby um I'm
00:41:50
not sure justice has always achieved
00:41:52
that way though citing multiple
00:41:54
instances of lying under oath the court
00:41:57
gave marjerie noler and Robert Noel the
00:41:59
maximum sentences for involuntary
00:42:01
manslaughter in the death of Diane
00:42:03
Whipple 4 years in prison I don't get
00:42:07
the justice system anymore I don't what
00:42:09
if that was your your best friend or
00:42:11
your wife that died how' you feel
00:42:16
for what 3 four years you get to go lock
00:42:19
get locked away someone is dead
00:42:23
so but in the long run of it all I don't
00:42:26
think there's really any justice just
00:42:27
because we can't bring her back
00:42:32
prosecutors are appealing the Court's
00:42:34
decision to throw out margerie no's
00:42:36
murder conviction let me tell you
00:42:38
something if there's one person in in
00:42:41
the whole world who was sorry about what
00:42:44
happened it was Margie she not doing
00:42:46
good at all and it makes me cry because
00:42:50
I get these letters they're terrible
00:42:52
from prison margorie noler has written
00:42:55
letters to her parents I'm 47 years old
00:42:59
had a whole life ahead of me and now
00:43:01
it's gone
00:43:03
it's gone because of a godamn dog that I
00:43:06
wanted to get rid of Robert was attached
00:43:08
to him and his anger was too much for me
00:43:11
to deal with how I wish it was January
00:43:14
26th 2001 at 3:00 so I could do the
00:43:18
afternoon over again I still find all
00:43:21
this hard to believe and keep hoping
00:43:23
that this is still a nightmare and I
00:43:25
wake up and everything will be better
00:43:28
including time served and good behavior
00:43:31
marjerie noler and Robert Noel will be
00:43:33
freed from prison in 2003
00:43:36
I am going to be in a world of animals
00:43:39
animals behind cages and now I'm going
00:43:42
to be one of them as well
00:43:46
[Music]
00:44:02
[Music]
00:44:06
sh
00:44:10
[Music]
00:44:29
[Music]
00:44:35
[Music]
00:44:39
he
