need to add title here

Redemption song

October 15, 2011 7:45 PM

After a murder rocks the Austin, Texas, music scene, a call to police from an angry wife blows the 26-year-old cold case wide open. Tracy Smith reports.

Read Story: Who killed Natalie Antonetti?
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by maotzu October 20, 2011 8:53 AM EDT
The new reporter/anchor is good! Maybe it takes a little time to get used to somebody new. This is a tough business, the news business.
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by GuyMerritt88 October 19, 2011 9:45 PM EDT
Mountains of comments, on this thing, knocking the interviewer. I actually went back to watch some of this, a second time, so as to catch the alledged offense. I felt like she asked good, thoughtful questions and was fairly unobstrusive. Someone mentioned that she "injected herself into every scene.." - or something like that (pardon the quotes - I'm probably paraphrasing). Huh? You mean, ladies, that she's extremely attractive and thereby distracting? Plain and simple - and I'm not her Dad: I thought it was an excellent report and she did a fine job...I'm counfounded by the crys for her head! What did I miss? And the victim's son is a very talented kid - what's up with suggesting that he looks like a "heroin addict"? I'm 59 and I just thought he looked like an artist - and the guy sings and plays terrifically. Good God - what a bunch of haters. I was a professional musician most of my life and it just kills me - everyone wants to be a critic. I was really impressed with the guy's talent - and he's very bright...and articulate. And then someone yaps that he looks like a junkie. What a dumb, crappy thing to say.
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by bradfordjohn October 19, 2011 12:13 AM EDT
The police didn't check the alibi in the first place, so why would it matter now? The wife was a drama queen to call and get her emotion off her chest. The other guy who was known to be violent, flunked a lie detector test, seen and described by a witness did it.
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by dontbelievelies October 18, 2011 11:56 PM EDT
I think police work has evolved since the time of this crime. I know it was only 16 years ago but nowadays at least in theory officers interview everybody who knew the victim, at least they are supposed to. Now they have DNA and databases as well as high tech devices that make crimes such as murder virtually impossible to get away with. Instincts are still the detectives 3rd eye and I think that in the end this is what made all the pieces come together in this case. I still would have liked to have heard from the "eye-witness" that gave the description of the perpetrator. What was up w/that? Anyhoo, if this guy didn't do it then the truth will set him free even if his truth is that he is guilty.
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by MrLanders October 18, 2011 3:29 PM EDT
I find it hard to believe that police, when presented with the alibi that he was with his girlfriend in bed that night didn't talk to the girlfriend to verify the alibi. I don't think this story was presented particularly well. Perhaps it's because the reporter/correspondent is new, who knows? Too many unanswered questions to actually service the viewer. Like many, I don't feel I have enough information to form an opinion. After all, isn't that what shows like this are supposed to do? Give the viewer a sense that justice either has or has not been served? I thought some of the songs that Johnny was singing were very good. That picture of him as a little boy with his hand on his mom's knee, looking lovingly into her eyes was enough to make me want to bawl. I'm SICK and tired of this stuff happening on a planet that is supposedly begin overseen by a merciful and loving God. That kid LOVED his mom - and someone decided, for whatever reason, to deprive him of her for virtually his whole life - not to mention depriving Natalie of her right to continue living the vibrant life she was living. Did I miss the part about who Johnny's father is/was?
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by crestedibis October 18, 2011 7:46 AM EDT
Tracy Smith is new. Give her time. I felt she came off as an actress more than a reporter, but, gee, all the other reporters have been doing this for ages, and they've got their act down pat. In fact, some of them have been doing the job for so long that they've become caricatures of themselves. Personally, I was just glad it was not Erin Moriarty, with her "I smoke a carton of cigarettes every day and have mastered only one vowel sound" voice. Not to mention that Erin and many other female newscasters starve themselves to look younger, only to become sinewy, knobby bits of gristle and beef jerky--reminding me of Tom Wolfe's term "social x-rays." Tracy has a voice that is not unpleasant to listen to, she is not unpleasant to look at, and I think she'll get the hang of it eventually. I did find her manner of dressing a little bit provocative, however. Do we really need cleavage and mini skirts when the focus should be on the story and not the presenter?

The presenters not only narrate, but also (I glean) research the story and write their own scripts. Perhaps Tracy's inexperience could be part of the reason why so many questions seem to have been left unanswered, such as why the ex-girlfriends never talked before, or were never questioned?

As for Dennis--did anyone else notice that he looks like he's been doing a lotta that adrinkin' and adruggin'? Burst blood vessels on his cheeks, crow's feet galore...yeah, people in the music scene tend to indulge, but I'd like to know if he had some kind of substance abuse problem that made it easy for him to snap and kill someone, or if he developed a substance abuse problem after the murder, out of guilt. I'm not entirely convinced of either his innocence or his guilt, but as other posters have pointed out, if you're asked if you murdered someone, you don't answer "No, I'm sure I didn't," and his reaction at the guilty verdict looked as if he was expecting it. (On the other hand, being Texas, what are the chances of an innocent verdict?)

I agree that his wife was pathetic. I don't know whether to feel sorry for her or not. If her phone call to the police, the one that started the whole investigation, was a lie, shame on her. And I have to admit that I almost laughed when she said that she wanted Dennis back because she needs a man around the house to do the man's chores. (Or something like that.) Is she unhinged because she ratted out an innocent man, or could it be possible that she had been abused by him to the point that she was doing the Stockholm Syndrome thing? Flakey.

I don't think there are any winners in this case--unless Dennis is in fact innocent, which means that the real killer got off scott free and is snickering quietly as he watches the video.
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by papadorky October 18, 2011 5:45 AM EDT
I also agree with those who thought Tracy isn't as good as the rest of the 48 hours team. She speaks too slowly as if putting stress on almost every word, it makes me want to sleep. I want to know why the camera goes to her sometimes, it makes me think the story is partly about her and not the crime. So many other things i don't like about her (being on 48 hours)
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by papadorky October 18, 2011 5:40 AM EDT
No doubt the conviction was correct. When he was asked if he killed her, he said "I'm absolutely sure." It's like he had to think hard what to answer. You don't say you're sure to a question 'Did you kill her?' You just say NO, I did not kill her.
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by drewmagathan October 18, 2011 3:11 AM EDT
this guy is just shamelessly using his mother's death to peddle his mediocre music and secure a probable wrongful conviction. not a fan.
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by junkieforlife October 18, 2011 12:43 AM EDT
WOW...it's extremely SCARY that people can convict someone based on the amount of evidence presented here.

Seriously, for $10,000 you could pay someone to orchestrate a set-up with 5X better circumstantial evidence and witness testimony against someone don't like.
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