Season 13

1999–2000

Sep 23, 1999 · 60m

By all accounts, Matt Mathews can be a charming, intelligent man. He could be a good listener and a good parent. He was also a master con man. Over the years, he conned many women, stealing their hearts and then their money. 48 Hours tells the story of "Mr. Wonderful," a man who, to many women, seemed as if he could do no wrong. Correspondent Susan Spencer investigates the tangled web of lies that Mathews relied upon to create his persona. Was he a former pro football player or a doctor? A race car driver? Or a wealthy heir? Even as he was being put on trial, Mathews continued to defraud other women. Spencer talks to one of those women to find out how she why she allowed herself to be deceived, and also looks into Mathews' past to see if she can discover what led him to such a life. With the help of dogged detective work, Mathews is arrested once again. Find out what happened when he went on trial last year.

E2. Torn By Hate

Sep 30, 1999 · 60m

Just seven weeks ago, Los Angeles paramedics Todd Carb and Paul Medina found pandemonium after reports of gunshots at the North Valley Jewish Community Center, at a summer camp for preschoolers. Police identified the gunman as 37-year-old Buford Furrow, a white supremacist armed with a 9-millimeter semiautomatic and a hatred for Jews. In less than a minute, he opened fire on five children and then proceeded to kill a postal worker. 48 Hours Correspondent Susan Spencer takes the first television look inside the community center since the shooting took place. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

E3. Why Did Josh Kill?

Oct 7, 1999 · 60m

Scheduled: “Why Did Josh Kill?” explores the 1998 murder of Maddie Clifton, an 8-year-old Jacksonville, Fla., girl who was killed by her 14-year-old neighbor Joshua Phillips, who said the death was accidental. Phillips, who had hidden the girl's body under his bed, received a life sentence for the crime.

E4. Fatal Attraction

Oct 14, 1999 · 60m

Thomas Capano had it all. A wealthy, charming lawyer, Capano, 50, moved in the highest circles of Delaware politics and had been encouraged by some to run for state attorney general. But in 1996, Capano's carefully constructed life came crashing down, when he became the suspect in the disappearance of Anne Marie Fahey, the 30-year-old scheduling secretary to the governor of Delaware. How did such a seemingly perfect man end up in this position? With help from crime writer Ann Rule, who has written a book about the case, 48 Hours finds out. To most people around Wilmington, Del., Capano was a role model. But behind the mask, another person lurked. Correspondent Erin Moriarty investigates how the man who had it all ended up being sentenced to die by lethal injection. For three years, Capano tried to elude justice. But with a combination of hard work and extraordinary luck, prosecutors convicted him. Moriarty reports.

E5. Gambling With Your Life

Oct 26, 1999 · 60m

Gambling is one of this country's most popular activities. In 1996, Americans made $586 billion in legal bets. One expert estimates that 4 million people in this country are addicted to gambling. 48 Hours takes a look at this pastime, profiling a recovering gambling addict, a woman whose obsession with scratch-off games has left her deeply in debt, and a cabby who trades online while he drives. Melanie Morgan was a successful radio and TV journalist. Then she started playing poker, in legal games in Seattle. Soon she let everything else go, including her career, her marriage, and even her newborn baby. Correspondent Troy Roberts reports on her long struggle to regain control. A recent study found that 70 percent of day traders lose money. But Kenny Glick is convinced that he can buck those odds. Correspondent Susan Spencer reports on an activity that many critics say is just another form of gambling. Scratch-off lottery tickets are enormously popular in Massachusetts; by one estimate the state makes $800 million from this game. But this form of gambling has its price. Among those in its thrall are Terri Candido of Boston, who is more than $50,000 in debt. Correspondent Harold Dow reports. While he is ferrying fares around New York, cabbie Carlos Rubino, who has a laptop computer in his taxi, trades online and even offers tips. Dow reports from Manhattan's hectic streets.

E6. Deadly Secret

Oct 28, 1999 · 60m

Can a team of dogged detectives solve a 6-year-old disappearance when all of the trails seem to have gone cold? 48 Hours Correspondent Harold Dow reports. In 1994, Russ Smith and his wife Khristine had seemed like the perfect couple. They had been married for eight years and lived a comfortable life in Kalamazoo, Mich., with their 7-year-old daughter Candace. Next-door neighbor Debbie Orosz says that Khristine was a wonderful mother, deeply involved in her daughter's life. A former policeman, Smith, 32 at the time, worked as the service manager of the local Sears automotive department. But in September of that year, Khristine disappeared.

E7. Impossible Mission

Nov 1, 1999 · 60m

On April 3, 1989, 22-year-old Chip Flynn was shot to death in a Central Florida orange grove. Soon after, police arrested Crosley Green, a black man recently released from prison on drug charges. On Sept. 5, 1990, all all-white jury convicted Green, then 32, of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to death. Ever since, he has been on death row. Last year five prominent private detectives got together to try to exonerate Green. They believe he is innocent. 48 Hours Correspondent Erin Moriarty followed them as they revisited crime scenes, reinterviewed witnesses and reinterpreted evidence, in an effort to save Green's life.

E8. A Mother Accused

Nov 4, 1999 · 60m

Scheduled: A report on Munchausen syndrome by proxy follows the case of a Florida woman convicted of child abuse for making her daughter sick as a way of gaining attention for herself. Correspondent: Harold Dow.

E9. The Imposter

Nov 11, 1999 · 60m

Over his life, 42-year-old David Pecard has had many careers. Among other things, he has been a lawyer, a police officer, an emergency room technician and a soldier. He has also been many people: Wayne Simms, Kenny Tyler, Thomas Michael Lamar, Brandon Lee Bailey, David Auni, Michael Simms, Robert Simms and Paul Robert Ritter, among others. Who is Pecard? No one, not even him, is quite sure. But whatever else he may be, he is also a prolific con man, who over the last 25 years has talked his way with remarkable skill into police departments and onto top secret military posts. He conducted federal investigations with the FBI, put criminals behind bars and married six women. 48 Hours Correspondent Peter Van Sant reports on this extremely unusual case.

E10. A House Divided

Nov 18, 1999 · 60m

Tom Green is a polygamist. "Men are designed by nature to love more than one woman," he says. But he has a problem. In Utah, where he lives, polygamy is a felony, and Green faces up to 25 years in jail. 48 Hours Correspondent Troy Roberts reports on this complex case.

E11. Miracles

Dec 9, 1999 · 60m

To most people, a miracle is an event that appears unexplainable by the laws of nature or science, and therefore is supernatural or an act of God. A recent poll found that 61 percent of Americans believe in miracles. Do they exist? And to what extent? Should we believe? 48 Hours takes a close look at miracles of all shapes and sizes. Correspondent Bill Lagattuta travels to Rome to find out how the Vatican chooses a saint. Officials are in the process of deciding on the status of Katherine Drexel, a Philadelphia heiress who gave up her wealth to become a nun, and who, many believe, had healing powers. Correspondent Harold Dow reports on one desperate family who traveled to Lourdes in search of a miraculous cure to an incurable disease. Tanya Fisher had never met her birth mother. After searching for years, she finally found her, and discovered that they had actually been neighbors. Correspondent Susan Spencer reports from North Carolina.

E12. Class of 2000: Too Much Too Soon

Dec 16, 1999 · 60m

Being a teen-ager can be difficult. Teetering between childhood and adulthood, teens are often saddled with myriad responsibilities and can feel pulled in a thousand different directions. To find out what being a teen in contemporary America is really like, 48 Hours spent the last year reporting on extraordinary members of the Class of 2000. 48 Hours introduces several teens dealing with daunting obstacles - challenges that would be difficult for anyone, of any age. Find out how they muster the requisite courage and drive, and what they are able to accomplish. Correspondent Peter Van Sant reports on Cayla Sutton and Brandy Jones, two North Carolina teen-agers who confront a devastating flood their senior year of high school. Fort Worth, Texas, high school senior Jacque Steinmetz thought that her church was just about the safest place she could be. She was wrong. Correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports how Jacque copes with the emotional aftermath of a deadly shooting. Correspondent Bill Lagattuta reports on 17-year-old Californian Mae Lin Schultz, who has spent the past two years rebuilding her life after a mudslide destroyed her family's house. Correspondent Harold Dow spends time with Jennifer Bell, a Maryland teen who earlier this year suffered a stroke. After coming out of a coma, she is determined to return to school and graduate on time with her high school class. Five years ago, Rachel Hubnik of Plano, Texas, began experimenting with drugs, eventually moving to heroin. Now 16, Rachel is struggling to stay off drugs and rebuild her life. Troy Roberts reports.

E13. The Future of Everything

Dec 30, 1999 · 60m

What will life in the next century be like? Are we on the brink of a technological and social revolution? And who will decide the knotty moral questions that science brings to the fore? With the new century just a few days old, 48 Hours takes a probing look at the future of medicine, technology and lifestyles. Correspondent Peter Van Sant reports on the latest in haute couture: clothing that lets people compute while they strut - or just go about their daily lives. Correspondent Bill Geist profiles an innovative filmmaker, part of a new breed creating movies with the latest in digital technology - and cutting costs in the process. At age 82, Mary Bowermaster is a world-class athlete, in better shape than many people a third her age. Correspondent Mike Wallace spends some time with her, to find out how she does it. Correspondent Richard Schlesinger reports on the latest research on how the brain works, and how it can be improved. One day, we may be able to artificially augment our intelligence with microscopic computers implanted in our brains. Afflicted with a deadly disease, 12-year-old Amy Frohnmayer is hoping that a cutting-edge treatment known as gene therapy will save her life. Correspondent Jerry Bowen examines the controversy behind risky gene therapy. Three years ago, with the help of a new procedure, Judy Bershak had her first child. She was almost 50 and past menopause. As researchers learn more about human genetics and reproduction, cases like hers are becoming more and more common.

E14. Family Feuds

Jan 6, 2000 · 60m

Every family has its problems and its petty disputes. But some families get more creative about their arguments. They sue each other, threaten each other, even raise the rent on each other. 48 Hours takes a probing look at families who just don't get along. These people just might make your family look like the Waltons. Correspondent Susan Spencer reports on the Tinney family, which is fighting over a million dollar family home. What happens when an elderly wealthy mother likes her plumber so much that she adopts him? When the landlord is also your sister, raising the rent can create some knotty problems. Correspondent Harold Dow visits Lockhart, Texas, where two siblings got into a serious beef over the family's famous barbecue restaurant. Comedian Louie Anderson hosts the long-running game show Family Feud. As Correspondent Bernie Goldberg discovers, Anderson has his own, er, unusual, family to deal with. The Kirk brothers live in Unity, Maine. But their own relationship doesn't quite live up to the town's name. Correspondent Peter Van Sant spends time with the two loggers, who were involved in a bitter fight over a piece of equipment known as a skidder.

E15. A Family's Shame

Jan 13, 2000 · 60m

What happens when a vicious criminal turns out to be your child or sibling? 48 Hours takes a probing look at family members coping with the ordeal of having a killer in the family. Correspondent Bill Lagattuta reports on the Robisons, who are fighting to save their son from execution. But the killer himself, Larry Robison, says that he is ready to die. As the appeals drag on, the Robison family becomes divided over whether to keep fighting to save Larry Robison's life. Correspondent Susan Spencer reports on policewoman Molly McIntyre's sense of duty in a murder case where her son is a suspect. After her son is charged with murder, Molly McIntyre plays a forceful role in the trial. Will she succeed?

E16. Weighing The Risks

Jan 20, 2000 · 60m

Obesity is the second-leading cause of preventable deaths in this country, according to a recent report in the New England Journal of Medicine. The government now says that 34 percent of Americans are clinically obese - at least a third of their weight is fat. Being overweight is a nationwide problem and a national obsession. Every year millions of Americans go on diets. Some of them lose weight permanently; most, however, do not. 48 Hours takes a probing look at this issue, focusing on several people trying to slim down, and on some new dieting strategies - including a controversial surgery that literally shrinks the stomach.

E17. Justice For Sheila? aka Murder For Hire? - Revisited

Jan 31, 2000 · 60m

Updates add information about the murder investigation of Sheila Bellush, killed in front of her babies. Also known as "Murder For Hire?"

E18. Who Killed Robert Adair? aka Murder in L.A.

Feb 3, 2000 · 60m

In 1996, Michael and Mindy Shapiro went through a bitter, acrimonious divorce, involving infidelity, jealousy and revenge. But the Shapiros' divorce went beyond normal nastiness: It included accusations of murder, reports 48 Hours Correspondent Bill Lagattuta. In 1995, Dr. Shapiro began having an affair with one of his patients, Jean Adair, a married woman. Soon after, his wife discovered the affair. The next year, someone brutally murdered Adair's husband, Robert. Someone smashed Robert Adair's head in with a baseball bat. Was it his wife, Jean? Or did Mindy Shapiro have something to do with the crime? After two years, police charged Jean Adair with murdering her husband. But prosecutors will have a hard time proving their case; Mindy Shapiro gives the defense a powerful weapon. After three weeks, both sides rest. The jury deliberates. Will they find Jean Adair guilty?

E19. The Perfect Child

Feb 10, 2000 · 60m

Crystal and Jesse wanted a family. So they decided to adopt. They went all the way to Russia and adopted two children. But their dream took a strange, difficult turn. They say one of the children, a nine-year-old girl, turned out to have deep emotional problems. Could they cope with their new dilemma? 48 Hours Correspondent Troy Roberts reports on this sad, complicated story.

E20. Matchmaker

Feb 14, 2000 · 60m

There are more than 70 million single adults in America today. That seems like a lot to choose from, but finding a soulmate is not easy. Americans are working harder these days, and that leaves little time for dating. But the search for true love goes on. Millions are using new methods of matchmaking - everything from online dating services to international singles tours. 48 Hours takes a look at a few of these new-fangled ways of making a connection. Love At First Byte: A singer who lives in San Francisco, Christine LeDoux signed up for Match.com, an online dating service. After going on 15 online dates, will her sixteenth be the charm? As 48 Hours tagged along, she went out with British computer consultant Andy Wright. Find out if the sparks flew. A successful real estate saleswoman in Bentonville, Arkansas, Della Ivy Lavan, also signed up with Match.com. She met a North Carolina man named Scott Bradburg. They seemed to have a lot in common, and Lavan decided to fly to North Carolina to meet him. Will they - and their children - get along? Will Bradburg pass the "car door test?" Hot Pursuit: Looking for love, some single men signed up for a matchmaking tour in Moscow. Dan McGovern, Ed Lee and 28 other American bachelors each paid $3,000 to meet a group of almost 200 Russian women. "You're going to have a few girls that are looking to get a ride to the United States," said Preston Stuckle, president of the company running the tour. "But 90 percent of these girls are just looking for a good man." McGovern ended up meeting a Ukrainian named Julia, while Lee met a woman named Natasha. Did either of them find true love? Find out. Dangerous Liaison? In 1996, Texas oilman Maple Hughes went to Odessa, Ukraine, to find his perfect match. There, Hughes, 63, met Roxana Yani, 40 years his junior. A few months later, the pair married in Las Vegas. Under confusing circumstances, Yani returned to Ukraine. When she didn't return after five months, a despe

E21. Daddy's Little Girl

Feb 17, 2000 · 60m

On Sept. 27, 1995, Mindy Berenyi, then 16, broke into her father's bedroom and took his shotgun. When her father came home, she shot and killed him. Her decision to pull the trigger has bitterly divided her family, pitting grandchildren against grandparents, as well as brothers against sisters. 48 Hours Correspondent Susan Spencer reports on a killing that split a family. One side thinks that Mindy Berenyi is a calculating murderer; the other believes that she was driven to kill by her abusive father. Mindy says that her father Andy abused her, physically and emotionally. Andy's wife, Mindy's stepmom, says that he was strict but that he never crossed the line. Spencer reports on both sides. Mindy's defense rests on a theory called "battered child syndrome." She claims that her father's abuse had left her in such terror that one look from him sent her over the edge.

E22. Panic

Feb 24, 2000 · 60m

About 20 million Americans suffer from some type of anxiety disorder. Many must deal every day with the fear that at any moment they could be overwhelmed by panic, one of type of anxiety disorder. The symptoms can be overwhelming. "My legs get shaky," says Theresa Murphy, explaining her panic attacks. "I can't control my own body. Everything gets blurry. But when it actually blacks out, and you can't see anything, that's probably the scariest thing." Episodes can last for a few minutes or days, she says. 48 Hours explores anxiety disorders and spends time with several people, including Donny Osmond, who are trying to overcome them. Correspondent Peter Van Sant reports on two people trying out a new treatment for panic disorder. Can one week of intense therapy erase years of anxiety? Find out. Although he has performed before large audiences for most of his life, Donny Osmond didn't know until recently that he had a severe anxiety disorder. Harold Dow finds out how Osmond faced his problem. Richard Schlesinger reports on a new method of confronting anxiety: using dogs as stress-busters.

E23. Invisible Killers

Mar 2, 2000 · 60m

It was supposed to be the house of their dreams. Now their million-dollar house is worthless. They were forced out when an invisible poison moved in. The whole family got sick - including their young son. 48 Hours tells their story, and shows how bacteria and viruses can infiltrate our lives. Correspondent Erin Moriarty reports on a family whose dream house was transformed into a nightmare by a poisonous mold. The mold spread throughout the house and forced them to leave. Did it cause brain damage? It was a simple visit to the county fair that ended tragically. Peter Van Sant reports on how a small drink of contaminated water scarred a family forever. Last year, Cody Unser, an energetic, athletic 12-year-old, was paralyzed by a puzzling virus. Troy Roberts reports on how Cody, the daughter of auto racing legend Al Unser Jr., is coping with her condition. Peter Van Sant takes a "germ tour" of Tucson, Ariz., with microbiologist Charles Gerba. How contaminated are most everyday places? Find out. Bill Lagattuta reports on Strep B, a bug that can kill newborn infants. See what happened to two families whose children had the disease.

E24. Never Forget III

Mar 9, 2000 · 60m

The two cases were eerily similar. In 1963, in a quiet Ohio town, 15-year-old Patti Rebholz was bludgeoned to death. Police questioned her boyfriend, Michael Wehrung, but for years no one was charged. In 1975, in an exclusive Connecticut suburb, 15-year-old Martha Moxley was beaten to death with a golf club. Police had several suspects, among them 15-year-old Michael Skakel. In this case as well, no was charged for years. Now, police have reopened both cases. But is it too late for justice to be done? 48 Hours investigates. Who Killed Patty Rebholz? Murders didn't happen in Greenhills. But one night in 1963, 15-year-old Patty Rebholz was brutally killed. Police suspected that Michael Wehrung had something to do with her death, but an unusual judicial decision kept him free. Harold Dow reports. A Trial: Years later, prosecutors make an arrest. What happens next? Who Killed Martha Moxley? On the night before Halloween in 1975, someone attacked Martha Moxley with a golf club. The club came from a set owned by her neighbors, the Skakels. No one was ever arrested. But in 1998, police reopened the case. Find out what happened.

E25. Cyberstalker

Mar 30, 2000 · 60m

More than 15 million children currently go online - more than 10 million of then in America. Are they safe? For that matter, are adults safe when they go online? Maybe not. 48 Hours takes a look at cyberstalking and other online dangers. Tracking Cyber-Predators: Correspondent Peter Van Sant reports on Operation Blue Ridge Thunder, a team of investigators in rural Virginia trying to crack down on pedophiles who comb the Web to find victims. Catching A 'Traveler': Van Sant continues his report: After months of work, Operation Blue Ridge Thunder moves to arrest one alleged pedophile. Will it succeed? Love's Tangled Web: Bill Lagattuta explores a new way to check on people you meet online. One woman relied on the service, with some unexpected results. An Online Tragedy: Susan Spencer reports on one man who took his obsession into cyberspace, with deadly results.

E26. Breaking Point

Apr 12, 2000 · 60m

Every year about 1,000 homicides are committed by people who are mentally ill and not in treatment. Many of these cases have made national headlines; in one case two years ago, a schizophrenic man killed a young woman by pushing her in front of a New York City subway. Often, the families of those with psychiatric problems must decide whether to have their children forcibly hospitalized. 48 Hours looks at this dilemma, focusing on several particularly difficult cases.

E27. Who Killed These Girls?

What would drive well-educated girls from a well-off suburb to become armed robbers? 48 Hours examines the case of four Texas teen-agers charged with armed robbery after allegedly pulling a string of stickups last year. Drugs and Money: Around Houston, Kingwood has a reputation of being an oasis from urban problems. But growing up there did not keep four teen-age girls out of serious trouble. Bernard Goldberg reports on this unusual case. Teen-agers On Trial: After two of the girls pleaded guilty, they had to persuade a jury that they deserve mercy. But the prosecutor wanted them to serve prison time. Another girl pleaded innocent, determined to avoid prison altogether. Find out what the jury decided.

E29. Accused

Apr 27, 2000 · 60m

In 1996, Sheila Bryan was just another small-town mother, living with her husband in Omega, Ga., happily raising their two daughters Kari and Karla. "I'm a mom, and proud to be a mom," she says. But everything changed on Aug. 18, 1996. Susan Spencer reports on a family struggling with an enormous burden.

E30. Judging Dr. Morgan

May 4, 2000 · 60m

By his own estimate, Dr. Robert Morgan has delivered more than 6,000 babies over his 25-year career as an Indianapolis obstetrician. Many of his patients love him. But some patients say that he is not only rude and unresponsive, but negligent and incompetent. Susan Spencer reports on the bitter fight over Morgan's reputation.