00:00:00
Sword and Scale contains adult themes and violence, and is not intended for all audiences.
00:00:06
Listener discretion is advised. I will murder you! I will murder you! I will murder you! I will fucking murder you!
00:00:22
Why do we play this dumb music at the beginning of a show about murder? I don't know, Karen. Why do you listen to Murder for Entertainment?
00:00:33
It's a contradiction, isn't it? This is episode 299 of Sword and Scale. You know the drill.
00:00:57
Thank you. It was a busy August evening at a hospital in Georgia. Julian Reyes was sitting in a waiting room in his gray sweatsuit.
00:01:40
His fiancée, 30-year-old Ashley Bocanegra, had suddenly died. Detectives had just arrived at the hospital and sat down across from Julian.
00:01:51
How are you, sir? Detective what I am, this is Detective Blackburn. First, I just want to say I'm really sorry for your loss.
00:01:58
For sure. We're going to do everything we can to find the people responsible. Please.
00:02:02
No. Please. No. Oh, man. I know this is really difficult right now. It doesn't even seem real.
00:02:15
It's like, oh, my God. Every day is just a normal day. It doesn't even seem real.
00:02:23
Of course, it didn't seem real. When Julian left the house that morning, his fiancée was in good spirits.
00:02:30
Ashley was an active, thriving, working mom of their seven-year-old son. Now, she's dead.
00:02:38
A few hours earlier, Ashley had called Julian for help, telling him that she had been jumped.
00:02:43
You know, she called me, and she was just, like, really out of breath. So, she's trying to get it out.
00:02:52
She's like, she's telling me, I'm hungry. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe.
00:02:57
I can't breathe. Calm down. What happened? What happened? I just got jumped. I just got jumped.
00:03:01
I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. All right, I'm on my way. I let my job know.
00:03:06
I left. I came home. She's on the bed just like gasping for air. And when she called you on the phone, did she tell you who did this to her?
00:03:17
She told me two females. Did she recognize them? No. Did she describe them? One was a dark-skinned, heavy-set woman
00:03:28
And then one was a light-skinned, thin woman That's all she said I asked her, who are they? Do you know them?
00:03:36
Have you seen them before? No, I've never seen them before I have no clue who they are
00:03:40
During her labored breaths, Ashley described the woman who jumped her She was shaken up, exhausted, and kind of embarrassed
00:03:48
She had been beaten up very badly barely able to defend herself against two other women.
00:03:56
Still, she swore she didn't know who they were. Not a clue. When you got home, did it appear that maybe she had cleaned her wounds up or anything like that,
00:04:05
take a shower? No. With a washcloth? No, they were fresh. Fresh. Like, I mean, did you see any paper towels or, like, rags in the apartment?
00:04:15
No. When I got home, I opened the door. I said, where are you? I'm in here. She's in the bedroom.
00:04:24
I turned on the light. She took all the clothes off. She was completely naked on the bed.
00:04:30
Ashley looked awful. Her skin was raw and red in places where she'd been hit. Her hair was tangled and matted,
00:04:39
and one side of her face was scraped, leaving angry marks that told the story of what she'd been through.
00:04:46
Ashley tried to sit up and talk to Julian, but vomit spewed out of her mouth instead.
00:05:18
whatever they could do to make her feel better. And then the doctor told me that she was like,
00:05:24
they did a scan that has a pool of blood all by her kidneys. You know, and that's when they decided to
00:05:32
fly her out here. When Ashley arrived at the hospital, she had severe internal bleeding.
00:05:41
She couldn't breathe and was put on a ventilator. When the doctors discovered all the blood
00:05:46
was pooling around her kidneys, they decided to airlift her to another hospital for surgery. She died en route.
00:05:53
She was banged up She was banged up But what got her was because she told me she had gotten bit on her cheek She bit me on my cheek she bit me on my arm
00:06:07
She did kick me in my ribs while the big heavy side one was on top of her. The other one was kicking her in her rib cage.
00:06:16
Okay. And obviously that's what caused it. Did she say that they were using any weapons?
00:06:23
She didn't say anything about weapons. They were fighting. She said it happened so fast that she didn't have a chance to do anything.
00:06:33
It was just, they just ganged up on her. Before she died, Ashley had been able to describe the woman who attacked her as well as some of the beating.
00:06:42
It was all melting into fragments as she lay dying on the hospital stretcher. Now Julian was left to try to make sense of it all.
00:06:52
And I just don't know why. I just don't know why. You know, because we've only been back in Georgia.
00:06:59
We recently just moved back. Less than a year ago. When was it? We moved back in December of 2021.
00:07:08
Okay. After my mom passed. My mom passed in November, right before Thanksgiving.
00:07:14
We moved back in December to be close to family. Eight months later, nine months later, this happened.
00:07:21
And it's like, there's no reason. I don't even get it. You know, why would anybody want to do that?
00:07:30
You know, it was like random. She was going out to get me a birthday cake. Today's my fucking birthday.
00:07:35
She was going out to get me a birthday cake. Yes, it was Julian's birthday. And instead of enjoying a delicious cake with frosting and candles and maybe a birthday card and some balloons,
00:07:48
maybe a couple pictures with the fiance and the son, Nah, nah, nah, nah. Now he's sitting in a hospital waiting room,
00:07:56
talking with a detective about Ashley's murder. Now that's a twist. Ashley and Julian were both from New York City.
00:08:06
The projects, to be exact. They'd met in middle school. We've been together 10 years.
00:08:12
We've known each other since fucking eighth grade. Though they met in school, Julian and Ashley didn't start dating until years later,
00:08:20
when they reconnected. Until 2012 is when we finally kind of reconnected on Facebook.
00:08:28
You know, I finally was old enough. I had the courage to get around, you know, come out with me.
00:08:36
It's my birthday, you know. And she came out with me for my birthday. Eight days later, we're together.
00:08:44
So not only was it Julian's birthday, but today also marked 10 years since their first date.
00:08:50
The timing couldn't be any more cruel. A milestone meant for celebration was now twisted into a gut-wrenching loss.
00:09:00
Julian and Ashley had grown up together, but they'd always dreamed of leaving New York City.
00:09:05
Julian's family started trickling down to Georgia, and they followed. That same year, their son was conceived.
00:09:13
But the couple had gone back and forth between New York and Georgia for about a decade,
00:09:19
never really able to cut ties with the Big Apple. As crime rates rose and the constant chaos of New York seemed unavoidable,
00:09:27
they said goodbye to the North and called Georgia their home. We were both New Yorkers, but we always wanted to eventually go back.
00:09:37
So we decided to go back last year. We moved in January of 2021. You know, being back and going back to where, you know, to visit her mom, it was just like, we forgot what we left.
00:09:51
We don't need this shit. Like, it's just so much. And you seem to lose all these random shootings and beatings and stabbings.
00:10:00
They moved to escape the violence of New York, but mostly they wanted a better life for their son.
00:10:06
That's what our world revolves around. You know, so. When my mom passed away, we decided, you know, we leave in the ship.
00:10:15
We're going back to Georgia, where we don't have to deal with this nonsense. And then we come back to Georgia and deal with the same ship that we tried to leave.
00:10:25
The irony was chilling. This young couple, raised in the unforgiving sprawl of New York City's projects,
00:10:33
had chased a dream of a better life in the suburbs of Georgia. But it was as if the darkness they left behind had tracked them down.
00:10:42
Kind of like, what's that movie? Final Destination. The Final Destination franchise is what I'm thinking of.
00:10:50
It's as if when death comes, you have to hurry up and set the placemats out because they ain't leaving.
00:10:57
So it's like you're not safe anywhere. you know but i try to do the best i can to give my family the best i can you know because you know
00:11:08
the best chance possible and it's like it didn't fucking work you know like i said we're going to do everything we can to find these people
00:11:18
make sure they pay for what they did to you to you and your family though julian supported the
00:11:25
family on his income, Ashley had taken a job at Floor & Decor to bring a little extra money in
00:11:32
and give her some independence outside of her role in the home. She'd been promoted to night
00:11:38
manager and was working the overnight shifts, which had put a strain on the couple. I start
00:11:44
work at 6. She gets out at 5.30. She's right next door. So as soon as she gets home, I,
00:11:52
I I go to work You know and that just how it always been you know The couple started bickering Julian supported her desire to work but kept reminding her that they didn need the money
00:12:06
Plus, she didn't like working overnight shifts. It just seemed unsafe. Ashley was adamant about keeping her job, and making time for one another became really hard.
00:12:17
There's only so many hours in the day, you know? They'd been fighting for the last week.
00:12:23
It was so petty. And I was like, the last few days we were fighting about something that didn't matter, and now you're not even here.
00:12:33
And it's like, I could have spent the last few days rekindling and saying I'm sorry.
00:12:41
You know, I'm sorry for starting some bullshit, you know. And now we're never going to get that chance again.
00:12:49
Julian sat there baffled as to how this happened to his wife. I would definitely say something, but it's like I don't even know.
00:13:25
I don't even know. Like I said, we've only been back in Georgia nine months, and we don't do anything.
00:13:31
We literally work and go home every day. This attack did not feel random. Ashley was not robbed.
00:13:39
In fact, she didn't even have her purse on her. Two women had brutally beaten her, working together to hold her down, kick her, punch her, bite her, and scratch her.
00:13:49
They left her gasping for air and bleeding from the head. It was savage, like an animal.
00:13:57
But Ashley swore she didn't know them, and Julian believed her. Julian believed a lot of things.
00:14:04
To detectives, it felt like there was more to the story. Maybe, just maybe, Ashley had taken a dangerous secret to her grave.
00:14:19
The End It happened in the middle of the afternoon as Ashley walked to pick up a birthday cake for her fiancé, Julian.
00:14:55
Out of nowhere, two girls sprang out of the bushes outside her apartment complex and pounced.
00:15:01
In broad daylight, they beat her mercilessly, leaving her gasping for air. Barely holding herself together, Ashley stumbled back to her apartment and called Julian for help.
00:15:13
At the hospital, things only got worse. Her breathing faltered. Her lungs started to collapse and her body started to shut down.
00:15:23
Slowly, piece by piece, it gave out. By the end of the day, Ashley was gone. She was only 30 years old.
00:15:32
It was her fiancé's birthday and the 10-year anniversary of their first date. Now, Julian was left heartbroken and puzzled as to why this happened.
00:15:44
The more he talked with detectives, the more he questioned what Ashley had told him before she died.
00:15:51
You know, I have a camera at home, so all I see is like the typical neighbors we have walking the dogs.
00:15:58
When we leave, there's nobody in the front. There's really nobody ever walking around.
00:16:07
There's nobody ever really walking around. Everybody's just getting in their car and leaving.
00:16:11
Julian and Ashley had a ring camera on their front door, so their daily movements were tracked.
00:16:19
The apartment complex they lived in was one of those cookie-cutter apartment communities with a gym, a pool, a little park, and plenty of green space between the buildings.
00:16:29
People keep to themselves, shuffling to and from the parking lot to their own suites after work.
00:16:36
Ashley had described her attackers as a young Hispanic female and a heavyset black woman
00:16:44
that was all she knew with that description I can't even put a face to it I don't even have a clue
00:16:52
I don't know if they lived there I don't know if they just happened to stumble in there
00:16:58
I don't know if there was an actual reason for picking her I don't know the way she's explaining
00:17:06
and what all the injuries you observed it seems personal so maybe it was something very little to her
00:17:12
little to you like you're overseeing and then go back to and it's like oh like for example with my girl
00:17:18
if some girl like smiles at me right and she's like oh what was that about right she you know
00:17:24
she gets extremely jealous about it whatever do you think of any situation where like maybe
00:17:30
some guy was being friendly she just was being friendly back just to be friendly
00:17:33
and didn't know that guy had, like, a girlfriend and this girl is now retaliating.
00:17:39
Julian shook his head no. Then, after a long pause, he admitted something. Remember how he said they'd been fighting earlier that week?
00:17:48
What he hadn't mentioned was why. It all started with a suspicion that he could not shake The suspicion that Ashley may have been cheating
00:18:25
You never found anything on her phone? I don't look. Okay. You know, I... Boundaries, you know what I mean?
00:18:30
I don't care if you give me your code. I don't look. Any, like, weird behavior like me with a ring camera?
00:18:37
You've noticed her going in and out of the house? Okay. No, it's normal. Julian said that jealousy had been an issue for both of them over the years.
00:18:48
Was it just you guys just talking or was there actually... No, we never really argued.
00:18:54
No, I mean, like the cheating. Was it just saying it because of just jealousy, or did something actually happen?
00:19:00
Well, previously, in our earlier years, we've been together 10 years. Okay. In our earlier years, I did fuck up and cheat.
00:19:11
In New York? In New York. Okay, nothing here? Nothing here. Okay. This was in New York.
00:19:16
Ever since that day, you know, she always had her doubt about me. Gotcha. Maybe Julian had his suspicions due to his own guilt about his own past.
00:19:27
Cheaters often accuse their spouses of cheating. But the bottom line was that he had no proof.
00:19:34
Ashley never went anywhere without him. It seemed logistically impossible for her to manage an affair.
00:19:41
All she did was take care of their son and go to work. The ring camera proved it.
00:19:46
I'm not trying to get into your personal business or anything, but you weren't talking to any female on the side?
00:19:52
Like, does this matter? These females that... Oh, no, no, no, no, no. You wouldn't say maybe you've gotten jealous?
00:19:57
I know nobody here in Georgia. You know? You know what I'm saying? I just didn't...
00:20:02
No, no, yeah, yeah. Surprisingly, I've been on Georgia, you know, almost eight years total.
00:20:08
I don't know anybody. So this description that she gave you, they're not... Nothing familiar?
00:20:15
The police were getting nowhere. There was no shady business on Julian's end that could have provoked this deadly midday attack.
00:20:23
Keep in mind, Ashley died late in the evening. But she'd been attacked around 1 p.m. in the afternoon.
00:20:31
Around that time, a 911 call came in from Ashley's apartment complex. Hi, I've worked here at an apartment complex and there was two girls fighting.
00:20:41
And she's really bloody. I can see the blood from where I'm at. There was a fight in the apartment complex in the parking lot, I mean on the street.
00:20:50
Okay. What is the address of 2 Crawl Street? The woman who called 911 worked at the leasing office in the apartment complex and had seen the fight on her way to work.
00:21:00
And you said one of them is bleeding? Yeah, I can see her forehead from down here is bleeding. The girl had her on the ground.
00:21:07
It's a black girl and I can't tell if it's two white girls or two Spanish girls.
00:21:12
So it's three of them, three girls? Three girls all together. Okay, three girls, okay.
00:21:17
Have you seen any weapons? I have been. They're arguing right now. They stopped fighting, but they're arguing now.
00:21:23
The leasing manager watched from her car down the road as Ashley's attackers screamed at her while she was on the ground.
00:21:31
Ashley hugged her knees to her chest, flipped back her curly mess of hair, and suddenly sprung up to her feet.
00:21:39
I think they might lease together because the girl who got beat up is following them.
00:21:44
Ashley was following her attackers. The leasing manager watched intently, trying to piece together exactly what was happening.
00:21:52
As she trailed the two women, her unease set in as to where this strange pursuit might end.
00:21:59
I thought they were tight from where they were. They started walking towards me, so I'm driving away.
00:22:04
Okay, that's fine. But I'm trying to see what building they go to. They're going to Building 300.
00:22:09
the high end of 300. According to the leasing manager, one witness to the fight, Ashley,
00:22:17
had followed the girls who attacked her into the 300 building. But that is not where Ashley and Julian lived.
00:22:25
In fact, at the hospital, the nurse who tended to Ashley had also reported the assault to the police.
00:22:32
When the cops called to talk to Ashley, before she died, the cops were able to get her side of the story.
00:23:06
that she matches the description and that out of nowhere they just came and attacked me up.
00:23:13
I don't know, like, the reasons or anything like that. So, unless they were looking
00:23:19
for somebody or what, but... Sorry, keep going. Ashley said the women called out,
00:23:27
she matches the description before they attacked her. She said she was blindsided,
00:23:33
yet she was adamant she did not want to pursue charges. And, but once again, you don't want the police involved?
00:23:40
You don't want anything documented? You just want to go about your way? Yeah. Okay.
00:23:47
Ashley's refusal to press charges just didn't add up. This was an unprovoked attack, according to her.
00:23:54
Her hesitation made no sense. Something about the situation just found out. felt off. The police didn't have to look very far to find Ashley's attackers.
00:24:05
The witness who called 911 led them straight to a building in the same complex where Ashley lived.
00:24:11
Apparently her attackers were her neighbors. Two officers knocked on the door and a young man
00:24:18
answered. We just want to make sure everybody's good so that's why we're here. That's fine but
00:24:27
We'd rather y'all come out here. Can they come out? The females that are in there?
00:24:33
The females that are fighting, huh? Yeah. At this point, all that officers knew was that a fight between three women had been reported.
00:24:42
They had no clue that Ashley had been sent to the hospital. They just needed to get details about this assault.
00:24:49
The young man at the door stepped aside, and a heavy-set black woman walked to the open breezeway.
00:24:56
She was breathless and sweaty, wearing a white t-shirt and yoga pants. This girl, she came to my house. She's asleep on my fiancé.
00:25:05
She works over there. She's his manager. And she keeps on forcing him to have sex with her after he then cut it off or she's going to fire him.
00:25:13
And we ended up fighting right there because she approached my home. This is my home. She lives all the way over there.
00:25:18
Is everybody in the house right now? Oh, just me. I'm the only one that fought. Just me. The girl, she left.
00:25:24
She left. The woman who fought Ashley was 27-year-old Antonetta Stevens. Though she was shaking with adrenaline, she claimed that Ashley had confronted her at her front door.
00:25:37
That means there was no street brawl, no random attack. Then they fought. Apparently, Ashley had been sleeping with Antonetta's fiancé, Daniel, who was the one who answered the door.
00:25:53
Antoinette claimed that Ashley was Daniel's boss at Floor & Decor and she had been forcing him to have sex with her.
00:26:04
How about that? Antoinette let officers inside. In the living room, Danielle and Antoinette's toddler was watching TV.
00:26:24
Antoinette's sister-in-law, Janine Gonzalez, was there too. She admitted that she had also been a witness to the fight.
00:26:32
All right, so kind of slow it down. You were going... The female that he's been sleeping with...
00:26:39
Him? Yes, my female. I've known her for five years. We moved here together from up north.
00:26:45
He works at floor and decor. He's been sleeping with his manager. And that's who was here?
00:26:51
Yes. Okay. And I've been feeling it for some time now. Okay. Yesterday, I'm walking to Quick Trip.
00:26:56
I see them walking together. And you're a woman. You know our intuition. I know that's the girl.
00:27:01
I've seen her. We argued yesterday. He broke it up. It was fine. According to Antonetta, she had caught her fiancé, Daniel, walking to the corner store with Ashley.
00:27:12
this was all the confirmation she needed to secure her feeling that daniel had been sleeping with
00:27:19
ashley this morning now she's calling calling text on text on text saying that she's gonna be
00:27:25
coming here i waited for her and then i fought her because i'm just enraged i'm very heartbroken
00:27:31
you see i started packing my stuff yesterday nothing was even in bags i'm just mentally out
00:27:35
of it right now because this is a person that i wanted to grow old with this is a person i want
00:27:40
to share my life with and I feel dirty, I feel disgusting, I feel heartbroken, and I feel
00:27:45
standable. Antonetta was fired up, clearly. She alleged that Ashley had shown up at her front
00:27:52
door asking for a fight, so they duked it out. Then Ashley left. But I'm okay right now. I'm not
00:28:00
going to be going out hating anybody. I'm not a medicine society. I'm just very heartbroken.
00:28:04
We just had to make sure everybody was good because we got a call. The adrenaline was raging through Antonetta, and she couldn't stop talking.
00:28:38
30 30 what's she look like um hispanic female yeah black hair we're kind of like highlights
00:28:47
curly no color highlight messed up teeth really big jaw of course the man who this fight had
00:28:56
erupted over daniel you know the prize he just sat there quietly while his angry fiance
00:29:02
Rattled off catty remarks about his mistress Just sitting there like a grown baby
00:29:08
It's amazing But I'm not going over there Just so you guys know I'm not going to go on a manhunt looking for her
00:29:15
I don't care I already handled my business Yeah, like I said, it's not considered domestic violence
00:29:21
Y'all went at it together So it would be If you want to prosecute, she wants to prosecute
00:29:25
Then technically both of y'all will go to jail So If you're not wanting to worry about it
00:29:31
We're going to go our separate ways and not worry about it. Thanks, appreciate it.
00:29:37
Oh, you want anything done to her? Nope, nope. I think she's got enough, you know.
00:29:42
Like Ashley, Antonetta was firm. She did not want to press charges. This was street justice.
00:29:50
She didn't need no cops, you know? Her claim that Ashley had shown up at her door only deepened the confusion And none of it added up Buried within the strategic white lies of both Ashley and Antoinette stories was a truth
00:30:06
neither woman seemed to be willing to share. I'm guessing you're going to pack all your crap up and get out of here while your clothes are on the couch?
00:30:14
Or are y'all going to try to work this out because y'all have a kid? I don't know, because he works right there.
00:30:20
So would I be a horrible woman and tell you to quit your job, and then you have to work with this woman?
00:30:24
I have to stay here. I work from home. I'm in this house 24-7. I cook, clean work. That's all I do all day.
00:30:29
It's probably why I lost my mind like that. Antoinette worked from home while Daniel did overnights at floor and decor with Ashley.
00:30:37
Their affair grew in the shadows of the home renovation depot, hidden under stacks of tile and carpet swatches.
00:30:46
Through long nights' stocking shelves, Daniel and Ashley fell hard for one another.
00:30:52
Their shifts became an escape. A stolen chance to leave their other lives behind and be together in secret.
00:31:00
It was kind of the perfect affair. No seedy hotel meetups were required. All sex was maintained at work.
00:31:10
But once Antonetta figured out what was happening, the party was over. Now, she was livid and threatening to leave.
00:31:17
So, I don't really know, but I think I want to leave, though. So, I'm in the process. I just don't know where to go.
00:31:22
As I did say, I'm from up north. I don't really have family out here. So put all my eggs on one basket just for this to happen.
00:31:31
I wish you guys could take me for a weekend. I really need a break from this in this house.
00:31:35
Well, be careful what you wish for. There you go. Seriously, be careful what you wish for.
00:31:42
As officers prepared to leave, Antoinette joked that she wished that they could take her away for the weekend.
00:31:50
Well, they can. She had no idea at that very moment Ashley was being admitted to the hospital.
00:32:00
And by the time the night was over, she wouldn't be leaving on her own two feet.
00:32:05
She'd be leaving in a body bag. Texts between Daniel and Ashley from the morning of the attack showed that they'd been swooning over each other.
00:32:15
They were falling in love. since I've met you you've made everything so much better and bearable I don't know how to explain it
00:32:22
wow Ashley you really make it hard not to want you or keep falling for you I can tell you how
00:32:31
I feel and not worry about your reaction I feel secure around you I don't know why but I just do
00:32:36
just know it's gonna be like that be yourself Ashley I want Ashley not someone else the
00:32:45
The conversation ended up with Ashley telling Daniel to get some rest. He signed off, saying he was about to have a nap.
00:32:53
An hour later, he started texting Ashley again. Where you at? I need to see you.
00:32:59
LOL, I'm in bed. I want you here so bad. Meet me, please. I'm going through it. I got kicked out.
00:33:07
Are you serious? Let me put on something real quick. I... I'm outside. Okay, bound to come out now.
00:33:16
Not only did Ashley and Daniel work together at Floor & Decor, but they lived in the same apartment complex.
00:33:23
Ashley's husband Julian was at work when she allegedly left to get his birthday cake.
00:33:29
But really, she was rushing out to meet Daniel because he had texted her saying that Antonetta
00:33:35
had just kicked his cheating ass out of the house. Ashley put on her green leggings and Crocs, as he would,
00:33:42
and left the house with only her iPhone. The ring camera on her front door was the only witness to her leaving.
00:33:50
She walked around looking for Daniel, texting him as she searched. He said he was on his way, that Antonetta was furiously packing, that she was crazy.
00:34:02
Ashley texted back how sorry she was as she crossed the road towards their meeting spot.
00:34:08
And that's when it happened. Antonetta and her sister-in-law, 17-year-old Janine, came storming onto the street.
00:34:16
Janine had her phone recording, the only truthful witness to the fight. Look at her, right there, right there.
00:34:24
Oh, that's my baby. That was me. You know who was supposed to be, right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:34:34
Antonetta sprang into action. Perhaps that's a bit hyperbolic. She was a very big girl.
00:34:41
Regardless, she tackled Ashley to the ground. She grabbed fistfuls of her hair, smashed her head into the pavement,
00:34:48
and punched her repeatedly. Her sister-in-law, 17-year-old Janine, egged her on like a deranged cheerleader.
00:34:56
Let's not pretend that world star hip-hop was not a cultural phenomenon. Here's what we do.
00:35:03
For sandwiches. For sandwiches. You're gonna get fucked up. Get the fuck off me.
00:35:08
Get off my hair, bitch. Get the fuck off me. Get off my hair, bitch. Get the fuck off me.
00:35:12
Get off my hair. Ashley's small body was powerless against Antonetta. After all, she was twice her size.
00:35:21
Consumed by rage and jealousy, Antonetta straddled her, fists crashing down as she unleashed everything she had on Ashley.
00:35:31
Say hi to Daniel. You don't see me. Say hi to Daniel. Get the fuck off me. You know he said I could come out here and fuck you up, right?
00:35:37
You know that, right? He's in the house with our son, bitch. He said I could fuck you up.
00:35:41
Yep, this is what we do. If I get mad and he knows I'm leaving, he feels sad. He says, I'll let you fuck her up.
00:35:46
That's what I'm doing, fucking you up. All right. Are you ready to die over, Dick?
00:35:50
Real crazy. Yep, you are. At this very moment in the video the leasing manager drove by she stopped when she saw Antonetta on top of Ashley using handfuls of her curly hair to keep her skull pinned to the pavement
00:36:06
Right, his manager, I'm getting you fired, bitch. That's bias. That's a conflict of interest.
00:36:11
I'm showing this to the job. You're fucking my nigga while he's on the clock? Fucking my nigga going there trying to ruin his family?
00:36:17
Bitch, he has a whole son. You're mad for him? Ashley was losing strength. She put up a fight, but now her breathing was slowing
00:36:25
as Antonetta sat on top of her stomach, crushing her and banging her head. Then Antonetta pushed herself up and started whipping Ashley across the pavement like a rag doll.
00:36:37
I will murder you! I will murder you! I will murder you! I will fucking murder you!
00:36:47
Antonetta and Ashley's rail-thin body twisted over itself like a wire hanger bent beyond recognition.
00:36:56
She shook her, punched her, and screamed in her ear. Stop, you're so locking my nails this time because I was going to do worse to you right now.
00:37:04
I will do worse to you. I will do worse to you. I will do fucking worse to you. That's why he was trying to protect you, but now he don't care for you to get your ass beat.
00:37:12
He let me do this. He let me. You're getting fired. You're getting fucking fired.
00:37:17
You're getting fucking fired. Yeah, you're off now. I'm done. I'm done. You're getting fucking...
00:37:22
I'm fucking done. Okay. You ready? The fight was completely one-sided. Antonetta dominated Ashley, punching her over and over with hard, angry fists.
00:37:34
Well, Janine held the camera and continued cheering on her sister-in-law. Janine was giddy, like the bad teenager that she was, completely devoid of morality.
00:37:46
Then, when Antoinetta was done beating Ashley, she held her in place and called to Janine.
00:37:52
You want some of this, Janine? Yeah, I do. That's when Janine backed up, took a running start, and drove her foot into Ashley's side with brutal force.
00:38:03
Over and over, she kicked her mercilessly, cackling and screaming like a deranged, wild animal.
00:38:12
like something with rabies. She wanted to show her beloved sister-in-law exactly how tough she really was.
00:38:22
So, she killed someone. Bitch. Wow. Go ahead. Bitch. Bitch. Want to jump her now?
00:38:32
Yeah, we could do that. You done? You tapping out? Yeah, I'm done. I'm like, you're putting up.
00:38:37
What? You messed with a crazy-ass bitch. When Antonetta and Janine were satisfied, she took Ashley's Crocs and her cell phone,
00:38:47
leaving her sitting on the blacktop trying to fix herself up and salvage what little pride she had left.
00:38:54
And he knows I'm crazy. Get her face. Looking dumb. Bitch. Babe, don't do this again, because you're going to have to make me fight another bitch.
00:39:02
Right. That's what happened to him. Go home. Let's go. But Ashley needed her phone back, and she wasn't going to let Antonetta and Janine take it.
00:39:14
And so, even though she had been shamelessly beaten, she followed them back to their front door.
00:39:20
She was woozy and breathless as she trailed them. Antonetta and Janine screamed at her to go home, but she didn't relent.
00:39:28
The screaming between the three women was so loud it woke up Daniel, who had been asleep the entire time.
00:39:34
Can you imagine that? this is all your fault and you're just sleeping through it
00:39:37
unlike Antonetta had professed during her brutal beating of Ashley he had not okayed any of this
00:39:44
as he walked into the living room Antonetta burst inside yelling let me repeat what Antonetta said in case you missed it
00:39:58
Daniel your bitch is outside I just fucked her up. I used your phone to write her, and I recorded it.
00:40:08
There it was. This 14-minute video held it all. A motive, a plan, the murder, and a confession.
00:40:17
All recorded by Antonetta's trusty 17-year-old accomplice. What a fucking idiot.
00:40:25
When Daniel figured out what was going on, he opened the front door and saw Ashley there, bloody and shaken up.
00:40:32
Stunned to find his boss and his secret girlfriend at his front door, he quickly slammed it in her face,
00:40:38
then found her phone and gave it back to her. She snatched it and scurried home.
00:40:45
Daniel was overcome with guilt. He immediately started texting Ashley from the privacy of another room.
00:40:52
Ashley, please, are you okay? Nah, I'm good. Leave me alone. Please talk to me. I can't breathe and my heart is skipping a beat.
00:41:01
I'm about to go to urgent care. Bye. No way. Please. Your fucking sister kicked me in my back.
00:41:09
I was good until she did that. Ashley, I really want with all my good intentions,
00:41:14
I want to see you and check on you. I feel sad. I can't believe your face and body are hurt.
00:41:21
Talk to me or let me see you. Fuck, I'm sorry. Sorry I wasn't there. In the light of truth, Ashley's secrecy at the hospital made sense.
00:41:33
Why she never told Julian or the police that she knew her attackers. She couldn't risk her husband discovering the affair,
00:41:42
especially not with their 10th anniversary and his birthday on that day. Antonetta refused to press charges, knowing full well she had set this storm in motion,
00:41:53
luring Ashley out with a message from Daniel phone It wasn like she claimed Ashley didn come to her looking for a fight but as the chaos simmered one fact remained
00:42:06
Ashley was still alive when they left her. Neither Antonetta nor Janine realized that their cruel plan
00:42:14
to teach Ashley a lesson about infidelity had already spiraled into something that they couldn't lie their way out of.
00:42:21
Something that they wouldn't be confronted with until hours later after the adrenaline rush had subsided and their kids had fallen asleep.
00:42:30
It was about 4 a.m. when the police came back to Antonetta and Daniel's house and
00:42:35
knocked on the door. Hey, I'm Detective Carter with Winnett County Police. Your incident?
00:42:44
Yes, hi. Hey, this is Detective Poppy, your doctor Poppy. Hi, this is me. We know that there was like an incident that happened earlier today.
00:42:52
Has anyone called you about it since? No. Was somebody supposed to? Well, we just got another call about it.
00:42:59
So I guess the girl went to the hospital and she died. She died? She's dead. But we know that there was like an altercation that happened beforehand.
00:43:09
And that was mutual when she came here. Yeah, we understand that. Yeah. But because of it.
00:43:15
I'm not going to kill anybody. Yeah. I'm not that person. I get it. The lack of remorse here is astounding.
00:43:22
It truly says something about the state of our society today. What exactly? I'm not really sure.
00:43:30
I'm not a sociologist. Is that who does things like that? I don't even really know.
00:43:36
But I can tell you that as a human being, it feels disgusting. Antoinette sounds like she's just been told her pizza delivery will be late.
00:43:46
Not that the girl she beat up, another human being, has died. I don't think I could ever fully understand the complete lack of empathy and sympathy that it takes to do something like this and then be so cold and callous about it.
00:44:06
But because of that, we have to kind of talk to you guys and get a more formal statement.
00:44:10
Sure. Wow, I'm so sorry about that. That was not my intention. I've been mentally going through a lot.
00:44:18
I have bipolar depression and I'm just going through a lot right now. And, you know, I came here from up north with my fiance.
00:44:29
That's him. Of course she has bipolar depression. Of course, right? Who doesn't?
00:44:37
It's 2025. Everybody has mental illness. You're not special. She's mentally been going through a lot as if this fucking matters.
00:44:46
seeing as she's just murdered someone with her bare hands. But sure, it's all about guns.
00:44:53
I came here with my fiancé to start a new life, buy a house, everything like that,
00:44:58
and I never expected him to basically cheat on me with someone at the workplace.
00:45:05
You know what I'm saying? So we would like to get a formal statement, so we're going to ask that you come up to our headquarters and talk to that.
00:45:11
It's just right up the street. Okay. I hear kids. Is there someone else here? Yeah.
00:45:16
There's someone here with them? Yeah. Okay. Were they involved at all? No. Okay.
00:45:21
All right, so it's just you two guys? No. If you don't mind, if we could just do some shoes, it'll be quick.
00:45:25
We can get an out. Okay. But their time at the police station wouldn't be quick.
00:45:31
Antonetta and Janine's reckless decision to film their assault had already set the stage for disaster.
00:45:38
But it wasn't just the evidence that left investigators disgusted. In the interrogation room, something unexpected emerged.
00:45:46
Something that would shift the entire case and reveal a darkness no one could see coming.
00:46:11
30-year-old Ashley Bocanegra had been attacked by Antoinette Stevens and Janine Gonzalez
00:46:30
in their apartment complex. Ashley was having a secret affair with Antoinette's fiancée, Daniel.
00:46:37
You see, she was his manager at the Florin Decor, a place that sells a bunch of tiles and flooring and shit.
00:46:44
When Antonetta discovered the affair, she used her fiancé's phone to lure Ashley to a meet-up spot
00:46:50
where she and her sister-in-law Janine beat Ashley up until she had to be hospitalized.
00:46:58
Hours later, Ashley succumbed to her injuries and died. Now Antonetta and Janine were on the hook for her murder,
00:47:05
not just a malicious catfight. They were taken down to the police station and the officers finally got Daniel alone so they could talk with him about what had happened.
00:47:17
How long have you lived here? About a year. About a year? Do you know Ashley? Yes, sir.
00:47:24
How do you know Ashley? Do you know Ashley? I don't know. She's on the relationship.
00:47:29
Daniel admitted that he'd found out about the fight after Ashley showed up at the door looking for her phone.
00:47:37
He felt terrible for slamming the door in her face, but he was stunned to see her there.
00:47:42
How did she look when she opened the door? I don't know. I'm not going to look cute.
00:47:50
She looked fucked up? Yeah. Okay. I mean... When you say she, you're talking about Ashley?
00:47:55
Yeah. And when you said they took her phone? Yeah. So they could text? So they just text her.
00:48:02
Yeah, I'm sure. Whatever she got. How did you know that they took her phone? Did she tell you?
00:48:09
She knocked on the door and yelled, please, I just want my phone. Daniel explained that he and Antonetta had been having relationship problems long before his affair with Ashley.
00:48:20
He'd wanted out of that relationship and he was preparing his exit. You and Antonetta are having relationship problems already?
00:48:28
Yeah, no, it's deep. Like, it's deep. You got a kid and everything, so it's like, it's similar.
00:48:33
I go out for respect. I have a kid with you, I'm going to respect you regardless.
00:48:37
Yeah. If I'm not with you, then I don't have to. I don't have to. Like, I don't have to do that part anymore.
00:48:44
I can just take care of my kid and if you need help, I'll help you. Like, it's not like this is fresh.
00:48:50
Like, I'm over here cheating on this woman. I'm not. We've been, like, this has been a toxic environment,
00:48:55
and she's just been trying to figure out what to do and I've been trying to figure out what to do.
00:49:00
But she doesn't want nobody to leave. I'm telling her, like, I'll leave. I'll live in my car. I'll do whatever, but...
00:49:07
Daniel had made it clear that he wanted to leave, even if it meant living in his car.
00:49:13
What is it with these grown adults that can't get their shit together? Anyway, Antonetta refused to let him go.
00:49:22
Because that's how it works? This sucks, man. I know. Is she hurt? Honestly. Like, real bad?
00:49:31
So, honestly, I'm not gonna make a show. I'm not gonna go and yell. I'm not gonna go call her.
00:49:37
I just wanna know. Well, yeah, we got a call from the hospital a little while ago,
00:49:42
and she actually passed away from her. No, stop playing with me, please. No, seriously.
00:49:47
Please stop playing with me. Please stop playing with me. Please stop playing with me.
00:49:50
Please stop playing with me. Please stop playing with me. Please stop playing with me.
00:49:53
Shh, breathe, breathe, breathe. Daniel broke down in uncontrollable sobs when the officers told him Ashley was dead.
00:50:03
He was panicking, and it seemed like he was the only one who had been truly devastated by her sudden death.
00:50:14
The baby, the baby, the baby, the baby. Oh my fucking God. Oh my fucking God. Oh, thank you, guys.
00:50:27
Oh, my God. Oh, fuck. Daniel was shattered. The woman he loved was gone, murdered by the very person he'd been trying to escape.
00:50:40
Every breath felt heavy, weighed down by the cruel truth. Ashley was dead because of him.
00:50:49
So, wow. Now you know why we're here. is more than just a little fight. Wow. Wow.
00:50:56
I felt the home in my heart. I swear that she left. I really fucking can't get into it.
00:51:07
It's fucking worse. How am I going to fucking do this? Listen, you just got to take a breath and give yourself some time.
00:51:27
The officer left Daniel with his thoughts and his son to keep him hopeful. They had two murderers waiting for them at the police station.
00:51:37
The ringleader, Antonetta, was first. After having her rights read to her, she did the smart thing. Sort of.
00:51:45
Have these rights in mind, do you wish to talk to us now? Well, I do want to speak with the lawyer just because of how sensitive the situation is.
00:51:54
I will say that, you know, I don't go out looking to harm anybody. That's not my intention.
00:52:04
I do feel, you know, very remorseful about anything that has happened with that young lady.
00:52:10
I'll also say that, you know, it wasn't my intention to even get into an altercation with her today.
00:52:21
She came over to my place of residence looking for my fiance. We argued. I was hit. We fought.
00:52:33
I feel really bad, but, you know, I really, I don't know. Just, you know, it's just too much.
00:52:42
It's just too much. She really trails off there, doesn't she? Real low-energy, low-confidence biatch.
00:52:51
Antonetta clung to her story, ignoring the damning video evidence on Janine's phone.
00:52:57
Maybe she was dumb enough to think that the cops would never find it. I don't know.
00:53:02
I wouldn't put it past her. But because she wasn't willing to talk, she was thrown in jail.
00:53:08
17-year-old Janine wasn't as sharp as her sister-in-law. She'd stayed quiet when the police first showed up.
00:53:15
But the moment a female detective strolled into the interrogation room, mirroring her tone and attitude, Janine's face lit up.
00:53:23
All it took was a little imitation for her to believe she'd found a friend. Hey!
00:53:30
At least it's not blazing hot in here, right? Yeah. You look comfy. Keep that right here for me.
00:53:36
Where's the jury at? I swear, I swear it was just very good. Girl, you see it though.
00:53:45
I know I met you at your apartment. Yeah. I'm Detective Carter. This is Detective Mariah.
00:53:51
He's still trying to like get filled in on everything. Okay. So basically her sister there was a situation with her her brother there was a whole situation whatever We just got there talking to Antoinette
00:54:05
Um, so basically we just got to get your side now. Um, because you are in here, he has to read some stuff to you.
00:54:11
So he's just, he's going to be the lead detective, so he's going to do most of the talking.
00:54:14
But I'm just in here because I'm kind of familiar with it. But I'm here too, so.
00:54:18
Janine smiled at her, falling for the trick that this cop was somehow in the room for her benefit.
00:54:25
Just go through, basically, since I wasn't there, and I'm playing catch-up, basically.
00:54:29
So what happened? So, like, let me start to where we did. Okay. Oh, okay. So, like, since I've been down here, they have been on good terms.
00:54:45
So, you know, arguments back to back. Janine confirmed that Danielle and Antonetta were on the rocks.
00:54:52
Things were bad. So, like, you know, they're arguing or whatever. So, my brother, him being a man, cheats.
00:55:06
Like always, you know, he's feeling less than anything. It's okay to cheat, so, you know.
00:55:11
He tells me, he tells me who he's cheating with and stuff. Now, me and my stepsister, I mean, not my stepsister, my sister-in-law,
00:55:20
we're very close, like, so close, like, you understand. Like, she's more of a sister to me than my brother's a brother to me, you know?
00:55:28
Yeah. So, like, we're very close. Antonetta was the sister Janine never had. She'd visited her every summer.
00:55:36
So when Daniel admitted he was seeing Ashley, Janine couldn't wait to share the juicy gossip.
00:55:42
So what's he tell me? I was just like, ooh, what a fella. Girl code, right? To teenage Janine, this was all a game.
00:55:54
The fact that Daniel, Antonetta, and their son were a family meant nothing. She was riding high on the thrill of being the gatekeeper of his secret.
00:56:04
In case you haven't figured it out, kids are dumb. Especially teenagers. If you're looking for them to guide you, boy are you lost.
00:56:12
Two days prior before this day, We were just chilling. She was working and Daniel did something to her to make her upset.
00:56:23
So we were talking or whatever. And I was just like, oh, I forgot to tell you. No, I didn't forget.
00:56:28
But that's it. Yeah. So I was like, tell her what happened. He explained what she did or whatever.
00:56:36
She was like, oh, really? She was upset or whatever. I was like, don't tell her that I didn't.
00:56:40
Because you're going to be mad at me. Right. He explained how the girl looked to me, though.
00:56:44
and you know earlier put her even skinny girl so i was like all right so that actually says
00:56:50
that if so the next day after that we went to the store last night last night we went to the store
00:56:58
last night and we're walking the crypt trip quick trip is right there you know i thought
00:57:03
that was you guys okay so we walked the cook trip as we're walking the crypt trip
00:57:11
Both of them are walking together from group trips. So they're just now leaving and we're just now coming.
00:57:16
So Antonetta is like, is that Daniel walking? So now she runs there like, who is this?
00:57:23
The feud had been boiling for 24 hours. Janine told Antonetta about Ashley, and then Antonetta and Janine caught Daniel and Ashley
00:57:32
walking to the corner store on their work break. Janine kept talking to officers as if she was gossiping
00:57:39
with her girlfriends on FaceTime. Her story was a far cry from the truth. She lied and said Ashley came to the door looking for a fight.
00:57:48
And she comes to the house, you know, big fight, big fight. So, after the fight, we took her phone.
00:58:03
We were going to call her husband to let her know that, you know, there's something out.
00:58:08
So did she knock on the door at first or you guys just saw her outside? Outside. She didn't know her. She didn't get the cancer.
00:58:14
Okay. Because I got this bitch coming. I'm about to beat her up. So, yeah. Did you guys start yelling at her before you guys approached her?
00:58:22
Or how did that go down? Yeah. Yeah. Tell us about that. It wasn't really all, bitch.
00:58:30
It was like, yeah, you came to see my nigga? And then, it was just fighting after that.
00:58:35
She knew where it was because she got ready to, you know. And then it was just fighting.
00:58:40
Who was fighting? Um, the girls, no. Everybody? No. Girl, you mean nothing? No. Yeah.
00:58:49
Of course you did. I know you did. Just, just, just a little bit. You guys, just, like you said, that's your homegirl.
00:58:56
It's amazing how this detective just mirrors Janine's style of talking right back at her.
00:59:01
And every time she falls for it, she relaxes her body and slips up again. Tell me about that.
00:59:07
How did I happen? I didn't go crazy, though, because she's small-tailed. Like, you're enough already.
00:59:14
I don't need to be punching her, dragging her. I don't need to do all that. I'm good.
00:59:19
I get my little hit in, and then that's it. Where'd you get it in at? I don't know.
00:59:25
I know I hit her, though. Janine kept changing her story. First, it was Ashley who woke Daniel up.
00:59:33
Then, wait, it was Antonetta who woke him up. Her lies were getting tangled and frayed as she tried to keep her story straight.
00:59:41
Did you guys text her? What do you mean? Did you guys send messages to her? No, we don't get her number.
00:59:49
No, I mean from his phone. Oh, from his phone? No, I don't think so, no. Okay. You sure Yeah Because you messed up your story a little bit I already read the messages You messed up a little bit
01:00:05
What was the messages? He wasn't getting kicked out. Oh, what? Yes, he was. Mm-mm.
01:00:11
I don't know. What the hell? You sure it was text messages to fight, or was it something else?
01:00:19
I don't know. You don't know what you want to tell us? I was trying to be honest this whole time.
01:00:24
It's fine. She'll be straight up. You're smart. That's a smart move because, you know, you text the state,
01:00:31
come over, I'm going to beat your ass. She's not going to come over like that. You know, y'all were smart.
01:00:36
Y'all finessed the hell out of that girl. Of course. She, you know, failed food to take home.
01:00:41
No, she was going to come fight regardless, to be honest. Janine's lies were like a bad high school rumor,
01:00:49
spreading fast but falling apart under the slightest scrutiny. She was too oblivious to grasp the fact that she wasn't walking out of this police station scot-free
01:00:59
with her cell phone in her jean shorts. Earlier today, she didn't know that she was walking into a fight.
01:01:06
No, she's dead. I don't know if that shit's crazy. Do you know how she died? Like, from fighting?
01:01:16
The injuries of her death. So they had to do an autopsy, but it was a result of the injury she sustained during the fight.
01:01:26
That shit's crazy. How does it make you feel? That shit makes me feel like I'm going to hell.
01:01:32
I'm not going to lie. I heard she was pretty fucked up. I don't know. Daniel saw it.
01:01:38
He said, when I opened the door, I saw her. I was like, oh shit. And I slammed the door because she was so fucked up.
01:01:43
He did do that. He did do that. He did do that. He did do that. The careless and sinister nature of her affect is terrifying.
01:01:53
People like this actually exist in society, and sometimes they vote. This girl has absolutely no remorse for the fact that she helped murder someone.
01:02:04
Nor does she even really care that Ashley was being an alleged homewrecker. Trying to ruin and break up your family?
01:02:12
Make sure that made you upset? You know, I wasn't upset. No, they've been on a rocky road for a minute.
01:02:23
I've been to him when he told me. So I was just like, what do I expect from this?
01:02:30
Is it her first word? Was he scared that he was going to go off with her? Was that scared he was going to go for her?
01:02:38
To be honest, me and my brother isn't really that close. We were trying to work on it.
01:02:44
So it was just like... Which makes it easier when family's together. You got your sister, you got him.
01:02:51
Yeah, but I don't live with a little. I don't really feel that family connection.
01:02:58
It's like me or her close and I come to her. And he's just like my brother. With that, they left Janine alone.
01:03:07
In the interrogation room, she laid her head on the desk and slept on it like a pillow.
01:03:12
Like little kids do in preschool. She played with the scrunchie around her wrist.
01:03:18
Then the detective came back in. Hey, it's me. All right, so we're going to have to book you into jail.
01:03:30
Your charge is going to be ag battery for the fight. Ag? Aggravated battery. Oh, aggravated battery?
01:03:37
Yeah, so just basically just a little more serious than just a regular battery. but we had to take the phone for evidence.
01:03:46
Ah, Janine's phone. The only character in this entire story capable of telling the truth.
01:03:52
So what happens? We're going to go to the jail and get you booked in, fingerprinted, photo, all that.
01:03:59
Then what else? Wait for the court. So you clean on your charges. Yeah, I guess.
01:04:08
Yeah, it's robbery. Robbery? Robbery? What? Robbery? Yeah. We didn't steal her phone.
01:04:19
We took it so she could come to an office. Oh, you took it? Yeah, she got her phone back.
01:04:25
I told you, she wasn't leaving unless she got... We gave her back her phone. We just did it so we could call her husband
01:04:29
and we changed her mind. Yeah, what a day. She got her phone back. She say it was okay for you to take it?
01:04:35
No. Okay, yeah, that's a robbery. The other charge is murder. Murder? Yeah. You'll be in charge of murder.
01:04:43
Me? Yep. That's too bad. That's deep, right? Yeah, that's fucking insane. Yeah. No, no, no, no.
01:04:54
What? Murder? I perfectly hate hands on her. All I did was pull her hair. You want some of this, Jenny?
01:05:02
Yeah, I do. Bitch. Wow. Go ahead. It was Janine's foot that delivered the fatal blows,
01:05:14
the ones that pushed Ashley past the point of no return. The sheer force of them big-ass hams
01:05:22
as those final kicks caused bleeding in Ashley's lungs, sealing her fate in a brutal, merciless instant.
01:05:32
Though it would take hours for Ashley to actually die, Janine's pardon this beating was the nail in her coffin. Antonetta and Janine were charged with
01:05:43
felony murder, robbery, and aggravated battery. They waited in jail for their day in court.
01:05:51
When it was Janine turn she sat beside her court lawyer tears streaming down her acne face as she argued she was just a bystander and deserved a manslaughter charge instead
01:06:06
But the video... Disagrees. There was no spinning the truth that was all caught on 1080p.
01:06:16
Actually, it could have been 720 or 480. Who knows? This ain't a camera course. But after weeks of wrangling,
01:06:23
both Antonetta and Janine took their plea deals. 20 years for voluntary manslaughter and robbery by force.
01:06:32
Two decades in Arendelle State Prison will do things to you. There's plenty of time to relive every reckless second.
01:06:41
Every cruel decision. Every moment of that recording is on Janine's phone. Plenty of time to regret it all.
01:06:49
Microsecond by microsecond. but would either of these women be capable of such introspection?
01:06:58
I doubt it after all it takes a little bit of intellect to have a conscience It's ironic.
01:07:24
Ashley and Julian came to Georgia from New York searching for a better life. A fresh start from the chaos of the projects and their tangled past.
01:07:35
Antonetta and Daniel came for the exact same reason. Even from the same state. But neither couple was truly in a good place.
01:07:43
Your geographic location doesn't really matter much if the core of who you are is all fucked up.
01:07:50
The trouble they tried to escape followed them across state lines, growing into an unstoppable force when Daniel and Ashley started falling for each other
01:07:59
during their night shifts at floor and decor. Daniel and Ashley found one another because they weren't happy in their own relationships.
01:08:08
They wanted something more, and when a new town, a new house, and a new life wasn't enough to fill the void,
01:08:15
What they wanted was a new person to be with, not a change of scenery. Daniel was a man trapped with a woman he didn't like, bound by a sense of duty to their son.
01:08:29
His affair with Ashley was a spark of hope in a life that felt dim and joyless. Every moment with her was electric, and Ashley felt the same.
01:08:40
We all heard Daniel's sobs when she died. Who knows what they talked about in those quiet moments together.
01:08:48
Maybe they dreamed of turning their affair into something real and long-lasting.
01:08:53
Maybe they even imagined leaving their partners and starting fresh together. But those dreams died the minute Daniel confided in his teenage sister.
01:09:05
Janine was the little piece of the past that came down to Georgia that summer and threw gasoline on the fire.
01:09:13
A child who didn't create the situation, but she surely made it go from bad to fatal.
01:09:22
And pretty fast. For Julian, for their son, for Daniel, and for all of those who loved Ashley, one heartbreaking reality remains.
01:09:33
Sometimes a fresh start isn't enough to leave the troubles of the past behind. And if you find yourself being miserable, and you want to just patch it up instead of discovering and fixing the actual problem, well then, don't worry.
01:09:51
Because the problem will eventually find you. Thank you. Episode 15, titled Burn of Sword and Scale Television, is out now at swordandscale.com.
01:10:47
It's a harrowing tale of a couple teenagers that just wanted to buy some pot. And bad things happen.
01:10:56
State of the world these days, I swear. It's like parenting took a decade off once they invented the iPad.
01:11:02
I'm going to go record some more. Maybe you should try being a mom. Thank you. Thank you.
01:12:00
Thank you.