Page 5 - Lars Itzo News Today

Very few end this badly. so investigators decided to take an even closer look at the husband who pulled the trigger. >> coming up, lars seemed upset. was he? >> these bits of emotion are only done in front of the detective. theyre not done when hes alone. helping new customers bundle and save big, but now its time to find my dream abode. -right away, i could tell his priorities were a little unorthodox. -keep going. stop. a little bit down. stop. back up again. is this adequate sunlight for a ko...

When you pulled that trigger? >> no, sir. >> lars testified for two-and-a-half hours, but would it be enough to convince the jury he was innocent? they now faced a decision between murder, manslaughter or not guilty. after more than six hours, a verdict. on count i, the murder charge -- >> we the jury find the defendant lars itzo not guilty. >> but before anyone in the courtroom had time to react, another verdict. >> guilty of manslaughter as charged in count two of the indictment. >> the verdic...

With police down to the station. they urgently needed more details. where were the intruders? were they armed? what did lars know? what exactly did he do? sitting in the interview room, wrapped in codys dog blanket, lars took them through what happened, step-by-step. he said he was awakened around 4:00 a.m. by strange noises in the house. >> i hear the front door or the door squeaking, and i hear the grumbling, and i hear the dog growling. >> reporter: he said hed never heard cody growl before, ...

Video of lars at the police station to show how he seemed to keep adding details to his story of the shooting. >> i dont know if i felt her or not, i just reached out and -- >> reporter: and how in the midst of tragedy lars still had the presence of mind to ask for his favorite beverage. >> here you go, mr. itzo. >> i enjoy a dr. pepper every now and again. but i dont wanna drink a dr. pepper when my hands are covered in my wifes blood. he doesnt even seem to take notice of that. >> there was on...

>> just kept saying, not debby, not debby, not deb. >> reporter: debbies parents flew to san antonio, to spend time with lars, to support him in their shared grief. >> he could hardly talk. he seemed extremely remorseful. >> was he saying everything that you would wanna hear? like, i messed, i did it, im sorry? >> apologized profusely for it and said it was just an accident. it was dark. >> some people might be really angry but you didnt go down that road? >> we did not go down that road. we sup...

The floor beside her. the shades were down. lars joined them a little past midnight. four hours passed, and then -- >> san antonio 911. >> uh, just -- had a gun shot. >> reporter: what had happened in that texas home? when we return -- >> i thought a heard a burglar in the house. >> reporter: danger in the night. and a confrontation in the dark. >> damn it! oh! baby! when "dateline" continues. help defend against those digestive issues. take phillips colon health probiotic caps daily with thre...

Dog is barking. >> help me! >> reporter: they found lars standing over debbies body back by the bedroom. >> lars continues to cry. >> go ahead and back up please. >> reporter: as an officer tended to debbie. lars tried to explain how the shooting happened. >> i thought there was a burglar in my house. i thought there were multiple people in the house. >> okay. did you -- what did you hear? >> i heard voices when i was in bed. >> and where did you hear the voices at? >> up front. >> okay and afte...

>> this was simply a terrible accident. >> when i first met lars, i could see his remorse. and after speaking with him, i said, this man didnt do anything on purpose. >> reporter: the prosecution started off in dramatic fashion. they played lars 911 call for the jury. >> reporter: as the tape rolled, lars shook and sobbed with his entire body. once again the prosecution wondered, was it real remorse? >> i have small children. i have seen that face before. and it usually involves, just before a d...

♪ >> reporter: as 2015 gave way to 2016, investigators werent so sure debbie kelly had been happy in her marriage to lars itzo and they took a closer look at the circumstances of her death. >> reporter: they pulled all those recordings from the day of the shooting, examined larss behavior, his turns of phrase, even things he didnt do. starting with the 911 call. >> reporter: this is lars in the first moments of that call. >> had gun shot. i had thought somebody was in the house -- uh, my wife....

>> what was he doing when officers were not watching him? >> he sat in this manner. >> sleeping at moments. >> reporter: and sipping his signature drink, dr. pepper. >> reporter: free on bail, lars understood he was still under the microscope. >> it was difficult. >> he didnt sleep much. >> reporter: watching lars suffer was torture for ken and kristi. they knew how much their brother loved debbie and how dark and confusing that house could be at night. >> you felt it was important that we come ...