every time i go to work. he s there sitting in his car until i get out. then he follows me. my two boys looked at each other and said stop or steve. once they found out his name. his mother said stephen wasn t stopping her, but in fact had spoken with jennifer a few times before asking her out and that very same parking lot. they became a couple instantly. this happened so quick, i was shocked. she brought him to church two weeks after they had met and introduced him to my father in law. didn t even know his last name. ed says this wasn t how things usually want and his agenda for his family, which he says was slow to accept outsiders. where i kind of family that every single night for probably 15 years, we met for supper someplace. either at their house or my house or at a local restaurant. we were just a close knit family. the scanners or a religious family, seventh day advantages in the last several years
multiple generations live together and a large home. one of the biggest in the neighborhood. they stuck together, kept to themselves, to the point where some people say they seemed almost clan ashish. brandi says not only where they tight-knit but financially successful as well, the result of a family business. they always had nicer things. i remember growing up when you re they had a garage sale one summer and it was like a gold mine. jennifer was beautiful, well off, came from a close family like stephen had and you re in for a family as steven did. what could be better? in the end, the real question was what could be worse? he didn t know where he was getting into. coming up. steven s family starts to wonder exactly what kind of woman he d gotten involved with. it was a disgrace that she would even do something like that. when dateline continues. n dateline continues if you can help heal your skin from within. with dupixent adults saw long-lasting, clearer skin
there is your horse. there he is. and the heart of an illinois farm belt a new relationship was growing very fast. it seemed steven and jennifer began dating one day and became a committed couple the next. making it a happy threesome, stevens daughter from a previous relationship, alex. steven often captured family moments with photos and family videos. his family says he thought jennifer would make the perfect wife and mother. he felt like she wants to cook with us, she loves alex she. treats alex like she s or mother. the woman to complete his life. yes. the family he was looking for. yes. but if stephen was happy, his mother had her doubts about the girl from that tight-knit family. i didn t feel like she really wanted to be part of our family, and that was from the very beginning i felt that way. steven s dad took a more positive view. i just thought it was going to be a good fit for him.
grandparents lived in ashland, about a half hour from stephen s family. then, not long after that stephen called his mom with more big news. jennifer was pregnant. i was excited for him. i kept thinking, you know, maybe i was wrong and being thankful that i had not said anything, imposed my feelings on him. i m thinking they re going to have a baby, they re doing good as a family. but soon after the announcement things seemed to change for stephen and alex. his mother says jennifer s family suddenly wanted nothing to do with stephen s daughter. he said jennifer s family told alex that she s not really part of their family. i don t understand how they can love her and make her a special part and treat her like blood and then all of a sudden just turn and go the other way. she says alex was very upset by the rejection. stephen was as well. soon with the spring thaw, about six months after stephen and jennifer s wedding, their relationship grew ice cold. now it was stephen himself
they had never been photographed. a jury would never see them for themselves. would any jury be able to sort out this case, an alleged family conspiracy, two women at the crime scene, one who appeared to have clear motive. the other, 75 years old, neither with criminal records. it seemed such a confused slim. case ed says, he in the family never thought they would be guilty. when she was offered a plea deal, she turned it down. and chose to go to trial. i was convinced she had done it. coming up, jurors had their doubts. surely skinner did she look like someone who could commit that type of crime? honestly, no. as a matter of fact, when i walked in there, i really thought she was one of the attorneys. i had no idea she was actually the one who was on trial. when dateline continues. dateline continues.