Transcripts For MSNBCW Dateline Extra 20180211 : vimarsana.c

She fell from the edge. I would call this an accidental death. But was it . She said that if anything happens to me, youll know who did it. A mystery of nearly 20 years heads into court and the husband is on the precipice. Did you kill your wife, jodi . I did not. What happened on the cliffs edge . Hello and welcome to dateline extra. Im craig melvin. When police got word that someone had fallen off a cliff, they werent surprised. The place was known to be dangerous, but even they couldnt guess it would take almost 20 years to find out what really happened to a woman out on an evening hike with her husband. Heres chris janson. Every couple has it. A shared song, a Favorite Movie or maybe a special place. Steven sharp says for him and his wife jody, this was it. Two rocks forming a lovers chair on the edge of a cliff. That was our spot. Theyd been escaping to this magical place for years, ever since they were newly weds for a starter apartment in new jersey. Up here the air was fresh and the views seemed limitless. Its sort of framed by trees. You should look down to right of the George Washington bridge. What they did want see from here, of course, was the future. Had they caught even a glimpse of what was to come, surely they would have abandoned this place forever. Steven and jody met in the late 70s in georgia. He was in the army, a bookworm who love the civil war. She taught history. Theres was a meeting first of minds, then hearts. How would you sort of describe those early years . Were they loving . Were they exciting . Yes, they were you know, we were in love. It was ecstatic. From there, marriage, a house, a son jonathan in 1983. And how would you describe jody as a mom . She was really devoted. Life was good. And even as the years went by, even with the demands of work and family, steven says he and jody still make time for each other like that last summer sunday in september of 1992. Steven says it was supposed to be a date night. No idea that that would be the most critical day in our life, our marriage. It was a day like any other day. Yes. Here was the plan. Husband and wife would drive into manhattan and go to a comedy dlub, a lighthearted night on the town. But they made a detour here to palisades, to their spot. Steven remember pulling up to the scening look out, sitting in the car with jody, sharing a wine cooler. Klthere were other people there sitting in their cars. And we walked up and looked over the spot where the binoculars were, and looked up to this sort of open view. He says they then turned and took a narrow wellworn path to those rocks. They sat there as the night fell around him, he with his back against the rock, holding her as she sat directly in front of him. At some point something goes terribly wrong. Yes. He said he stood up intending to go back to the car to get wine and a blanket. For whatever reason jody stood up, too. The edge of the rock was at her feet. What was your last glimpse of your wife . Just standing up and, you know, stumbling forward. Jody had gone off the cliff. I didnt know how bad things were, but i was stunned. I what did you do . I got down on my stomach, stuck my head over and i just yelled. Jody, joedy, talk to me. But no response. He grabbed a flashlight and flagged down a motorist who came here to the Palisades Interstate Police station. Lieutenant walter siri was on duty. Until he came through that door it was a quiet night, and then all hell broke loose. A frantic man was telling them a woman had fallen from the look out above and her husband was calling for help. I was there at a rescue mission. I shot she was alive. He began to lower himself off the side of the cliff where the womans husband says she had fallen. About ten feet down he caught sight of a ledge. The minute i got to that ledge there was a purse, i think two credit cards. On a ledge ten feet down . Right. But it was what he didnt see that confused him. There was no sign that the womans body had also hit that ledge or any part of the cliffs. Nothing. No blood, no hair, no clothing, no fibers, no skin. By that point officer walter siree had arrived up at the look out. Since there was nothing the husband could do to help in the rescue siri was told to get him out of the way and drove him back down to police headquarters. On the way steven recounted the awful moment his wife disappeared. We were talking and she said for me to go back to car and get the blanket. And she slipped and i didnt see her anymore. Rescuer troughy had made it to the base of the cliff. He had expected to find a wounded woman here, but he didnt. I said alt the first point maybe this was a hoax. Maybe she never went off the cliff. He and another rescuer began to walk along the base, pointing their flash lights north. Finally about 30 feet away the beams landed on something white. It was jody lying motionless next to a tree. There was a lot of blood on that tree and the blood was actually draining down the tree. Thats where severe impact took. Thats where she really, you know jody sharp had not survived the fall. To him it was clear, she had slammed into that tree. As he began to move the body, he noticed something else. She had the odor of an alcoholic beverage that emanated from her body. So when you smelled that did you think maybe she had had too much to drink and fell . At that moment, yes. Steven sharp was waiting in a Police Station for someone to tell him what it happened to his wife. Do you remember what goes through your mind at that point . How badly is she hurt . Where is she . And thats when an officer walked into the room and broke the news to steven. Jody was gone. I dont even remember who came in and told me. And what your reaction . How could this happen . That question would haunt him and many others. And it would take years for the answers to finally come. Coming up. He was rubbing his eyes to make it look like he was crying. You thought he was faking tears . Absolutely. Curious behavior puts a husband under the microscope when over the edge continues. Aah . I would have said you were crazy. But so began the year of me. I discovered the true meaning of paperless discounts. And the indescribable rush of saving drivers an average of 620. Why does fear feel so good . I fell in love three times once with a woman, once with a country, and finally. With myself. So, do you have anything to declare or not . Isnt that what im doing . So, do you have anything to declare or not . Wild thing you make my heart sing you make everything groovy wild thing, i think i love you applebees handcrafted burgers. Any burger just 7. 99. Now thats eatin good in the neighborhood. But some of us make somethinge make sommuch more. Dinner. Mom would be proud. With blue apron, any night is a chance to see what cooking can do. Welcome back to dateline cru. It started out as a romantic date for a new jersey couple. But it ended in tragedy. Jody and steven sharf hike to a fav favori favorite spot to take olook a l the view. It was the worse night of his life and now steven sharf in the Early Morning hours of september 21, 1992 had to tell his 10yearold son, jonathan, his mother was dead. I said we need today take a walk. And i told him and me immediately burst into tears. And i cry like i baby and i wasnt ashamed. He remembers his distraught sons reaction but little else from those hours. Were you sleeping, eating or were you i was drinking. I had my my wife and his son lost his mom. There was plenty of sympathy to be sure. His wife had died in a freak accident off a cliff of all places. How could that happen . And thats exactly what police who were there the night of jody death wanted to know, too. Right away i got a feeling that there was something definitely wrong. It nagged at rescuer michael chiofy. Why was jodys purse on a ledge, just feet below where her husband said she had fallen. Either she should be here or the pocketbook should be down with her. And it wasnt fitting. Another thought dawned on him. If jody had tumbled, why hadnt she hit the side of the cliffs . There was no blood or hair anywhere on the rocks. And the location of jodys body seemed off to him. Way off. She was like 30 to 40 feet away from us to the north. When a person falls off a cliff usually theyre going to go south or right down. Right down where the got off the ropes, thats where she should have been. Someone else was scratching their head that night for different reasons. It had to do with stevens behavior while the search was under way. The officer was surprised he was willing to leave the look out while rescuers were looking for jody. Did he give any indication he didnt want to leave . No, not at all. If it was my wife or girlfriend or whoever they are, they would have to pry me from the top of those cliffs. But he willingly got into your patrol car . Without a word. When the officer heard steven describe how his wife had fallen, he made a mental note. There was no emotion in it at all. Like he was reading a script. Did it occur to you, maybe hes in shock . No, ive seen people who have lost loved ones, ive never seen anybody act that way. But it was particular moment later inside the station house that really dot the officers attention. And he asked if he could get a drink from the water fountain. He was splashing water into face and rubbing his eyes to make it look like he was crying. Ia thought he was faking tears . Absolutely. Absolutely. A death scene where the pieces didnt connect. A husband who appeared n nonchallant. From a cops point of view things were adding up and not in stevens favor. It was the totality of the circumstances. Every little thing was clicking in my mind. And im saying to myself, this isnt right. Something is wrong here. Gut instinct is one thing. People are paid to be suspicious. Maybe their view of steven was too jaundiced. A few months later the ruling was in. The burgen county medical examiner concluded the manner of jody sharfs death could not be determined. The accident was like anything else, case closed or was it. Coming up. So you didnt think was a horrible accident. No. The suspicions grow. There a weapon at this romantic ron day view . When over the edge continues. Whoooo. When it comes to travel, i sweat the details. Late checkout. Downalternative pillows. And of course, price. Tripadvisor helps you book a. Hotel without breaking a sweat. Because we now instantly. Search over 200 booking sites. To find you the lowest price. On the hotel you want. Dont sweat your booking. Tripadvisor. The latest reviews. The lowest prices. Mom stuffynosecold nosleep mouthbreather just put on a breathe right strip it instantly opens your nose. Up to 38 more than Cold Medicine alone go to breatheright. Com today to request a free sample. Its technology was engineered beeping . While its design was meant to be seen. Experience the new 2018 lexus nx, and the nx hybrid. Experience amazing, at your lexus dealer. Welcome back to dateline extra. Police began to question Stephen Scharfs behavior after his wife fell from the edge of a cliff. To them he just didnt seem like a grieving. But did their suspicions amount to anything than a hunch. Her husband said so, and the medical examiner wasnt arguing with him. But detectives have a kind of sixth sense about cases. It was telling james linem something sinter had just happened. So you didnt think was a horrible accident . No. There wasnt any smoke and gun really, just something dark he thought he could read between the lines in his police notes he reviewed the day after jodys death. He did not react like somebody who just lost his wife should have reacted. And so the detective moved his investigation from the physical evidence to the less tangible clues. He quickly learned from jodys friends that this was a couple not in love but in crisis. The subject wasnt wine and roses on those cliffs. It was divorce. She was going to go through with it, yes, absolutely. Jodys long time friend told detectives hat jody had been determined to take her 10yearold son jonathan and leave her husband. She was convinced stephen had been cheating on her. She couldnt prove anything, but women called the house. And sometimes theyd call and hang up on her. In fact, linem learned jody had served her husband divorce papers on september 8, 1992. Less than two weeks later she was dead at the base of the palisades. The timing made him even more eager to talk to the widower scharf. Theres a sit down with scharf. Hes consented to talk, right . Yes. Two days of his wifes death, Stephen Scharf was freely answering detectives questions. Yes, he told them, he and his wife were talking divorce as they had sometimes done during their tem pestuous marriage. And it was true, there were other women. He said they had an open marriage and they were seeing different people. He actually said hed seen like 50 or 60 women. And she was okay with it. She was okay with it, yeah. They came to this romantic yet treacherous spot to reconnect and kiss and makeup. And the spot where they went, its not a spot you would go to reconcile with anybody. Detectives werent buyic the story for another reason. They had found something suspicious inside scharfs car. A bag for items you mind expect for a romantic picnic and one you would not, a hammer. Wine, cheese, claw hammer. If red flags are going up, they reached the top of the pole at that point. Did you think that might be a murder weapon . Yeah, i thought that myth be plan arkts, and he didnt use it so he went to plan b. Which he believed was to push or throw jody off that cliff. So detectives asked him the obvious. What was a hammer doing in that picnic bag . Well, he told us he fixed a drawer in his kitchen with a hammer. He put it in the bag with his picnic items. It was a convenient excuse for having that hammer. Detectives asked if they could check out the drawer and the rest of stevens house that night. He agreed. But as it turned something potentially far more telling was happening away from the action. And i said, look, mr. Scharf, im your local police department. He was a local officer told to keep an eye on Stephen Scharf that night as detectives combed through his house. The officer says he began talking to stephen about what had happened to jody when stephen interrupted him. He finally looks at me and says you dont believe plea. And then the officer says scharf said something that almost knocked him off his feet. And i said i believed an accident occurred. And i said was it an accident. And he put his head down and he said no. He believed that was a stunning confession. He ran to del the other detectives including linem, but they had just spent hours grilling the man. We didnt get the feeling that that point it would have done anything. They didnt find evidence. The cause of death at that time was listed as undetermined so officially it wasnt a homicide. In time the detectives moved onto other cases. Stephen scharf moved on, too. 14 years after his wifes death, he remarried. Tina scharf says hes been a loving ideal. It was like we were two puzzle pieces that were made for each other where each of us completed the other person. Utven in this happy new life, he says, hes never forgotten about jody. But he might have been surprised to learn that someone else was thinking of her, too, after all these years. Burgen county had a new prosecutor and he was eager to revisit old case files. Among them an unexplained death here on the cliffs of the palisades so many years ago, the death of jody scharf. There was this renewed push since 2002 to look into the cold cases. Marcos covered the trial for the record newspaper in new jersey. On one hand, he says, it didnt seem the prosecutor had any reason to pursue the cold case. In terms of hard evidence it had absolutely nothing new. But the prosecutor did have someone new. A famous name to join the investigation into jody scharfs death. Dr. Michael baden, a world renowned forensic pathologist who investigated the deaths ofs of john f. Kennedy and john bu loogsy and testified at the trial of o. J. Simpson. He was about to turn up the heat on a very cold case. The doctor has reviewed the evidence and has determined this could not have been an accidental fall. In december of 2008 detectives paid one more visit to Stephen Scharf. They wouldnt tell me what it was for. I had no idea what was about. It didnt make sense. 16 years after that fatal night on the cliff, police were back. And Stephen Scharf was in for a shock. After all these years you thought it was done. Not until they reach behind and hand me this thing, this arrest warrant. Coming up, the case heads into court with a surprise from the stand. And hear from my mother. Stephen and jody scharfs only son has some dark secrets to share. Did you see that abuse . I did. When over the edge continues. Wheres frank . Its league night saved money on motorcycle insurance with geico goin up the country. Bowl without me. Frank. im going to get nachos. Snack bars closed. Gah ah, ah ah. Im goin up the country, baby dont you wanna go . Im goin up the country, baby dont you wanna go . Geico motorcycle, great rates for great rides. But some of us make somethinge make sommuch more. Dinner. Mom would be proud. With blue apron, any night is a chance to see what cooking can do. If you spit blood you may have gum problems,s and could be on the journey to much worse. Try parodontax toothpaste. Its clinically proven to remove plaque, the main cause of bleeding gums. For healthy gums and strong teeth. Leave bleeding gums behind with parodontax toothpaste. Im dara brown with hours top stories. President donald trump taking to stwiter on saturday asking what happened to due process in reference to two white house officials who resigned suddenly following Domestic Abuse allegations by their exwives. And with the Winter Olympics finally under way tensions with north and south korea apparently beginning to thaw. Kim jonguns sister apparently invited man jay in to visit the south korean capital. Now back to dateline. Welcome back to dateline extra. Years after jody scharf fell to her death a new prosecutor reopened the case and brought in a famous forensic pathologist to reexamine the evidence. What would he uncover . Here again is chris janson. Ane ever murder trial time is an invisible but crucial player for both sides. Sometimes it hurts a case. Memory fade, evidence is lost, witnesses die. But time can also put evidence in a new light. Such was the case in the trial of Stephen Scharf, accused of killing his wife nearly two decades ago. There is no statute of limitations on murder. The prosecutor promised the evidence would tell a story as simple as it was brutal. A husband determined to avoid a costly divorce lured his wife to the edge of a cliff and forced her off it. If he has lied, he is guilty. The state martialed some familiar facts to tell its story, starting with the crime scene, where the prosecutor said the cliffs show nee sign of an accidental tumble. No debris, no clothing, no blood, no hair, no tissue. And then there was the husband himself. Cool and collected in the back of a police car. I didnt see any emotion from him. Who later confessed, the prosecutor said, to killing his wife. And then i said it was an accident. And he said, no. But those facts were not where the case ended. The prosecutor argued that they simply set the stage for the real case, a story told by the victims friends, family and most importantly by a star witness. My opinion is that the manner of death is homicide. Dr. Michael baden, the famous forensic pathologist, told jurors the crime scene spoke of a murder, not an accident. If a person falls accidently, the individual will be, you know, within a couple of feet of the base of the building. And that didnt happen in the case of jody scharf. Her body landed 50 feet out from the top of a cliff, and 30 feet to the north. She had to have been propelled from that point. Jody had to have been thrown or pushed to her death, he said. And likely from another spot entirely on those cliffs. He wasnt the only expert who saw it that way. The head and chest injuries are not consist with someone that tumbles down the cliff face. Dr. Marryanne, clayton was the burgen county medical examiner who first ruled the circumstances of jodys death could not be determined. Now on second look, she says, the victims wounds our lack of them told her something different, something vital. If jody had tumbled down the palisades she would have broken bones everywhere. She did not. There were no visible injuries on the back of her body. But why would stephen kill his wife. The biggest reason the prosecutor argued is he didnt want a divorce, he didnt want a custody fight, and he didnt want to split assets with jody. And there was yet another motive for stephen said the prosecutor, a potential pay out. Ussa Life Insurance company. An insurance representative testified about a 500,000 policy taken out against jody scharf months before her death, payable to a primary beneficiary. You can tell us the policyowner . Stephen f. Scharf. Jody scharf was simply worth more dead than alive. Her friend testified that jody feared stephen might do something violent if she pushed for that divorce. Even so, she said, jody was determined to get away from her husband. She was going to have divorce papers served on stephen, and she was very afraid of him. Yet was stephen violent enough to kill his wife . An unlikely but powerful witness was about to testify against Stephen Scharf. I hear from my mother. His own son took the stand against him. Now a businessman, Jonathan Scharf painted his father as an angry violent man who terrorized his mother. Did you see that abuse . I did. Jonathan scharf said he realized his father had likely killed his mother only after that arrest in 2008. This videotaped interview shows him recalling the dark past for the first time to police. She got coffee thrown at her by him. Now in court he had even more to tell about his childhood, like the afternoon he sat cowering in the back seat of a car watching his mother suffer. My mom was driving and my dad was just hitting her with the bottom of his fist. And i was just, like, begging him to stop doing it. He also remembered the last day of his mothers life. He was 10 and said his mother told his father that she didnt want to go out with him alone. She said if i wanted to go out with you, i wouldnt be divorcing you. But where was the proof that stephen had planned to kill jody that night . Well, there was the hammer in the picnic bag. But there was also testimony from this woman, one of stephens old girlfriends. I even mentioned to my girlfriend that it was a perfect relationship. Terry scofield had been dating stephen months before jody scharfs death. Did mr. Scharf tell you whether or not he was married. Actually, he said he was not married. And remembered something strange stephen said to her on the beach over that labor day weekend. He was under a lot of stress, and the stress would be resolved by the end of september. Two weeks later jody scharf was dead. Terry now sees that cryptic statement in a dreadful light. I was like oh, no, the end of september. And then the light bulb went off immediately. It also went off for her friend, in perhaps the most chilling testimony of the cushions case, she told the jury when she heard her friend was gone she immediately remembered something jody said just weeks earlier. She said that during this conversation that i have with him, if anything happens to me, youll know who did it. She said youll know it was him. The prosecutors position was clear, a husband with the motive, the perfect setting, the violent intent to kill his wife. Or was there another way of looking at that couple perched high on those cliffs on a summer night . Stephens new wife says the prosecution has it all wrong. My husband is not capable. That is not the man he is. My husband is sweet, kind, loving, considerate. The defense was ready to show how Stephen Scharf, far from villain, was the real victim in this story. Coming up. They destroyed the crime scene area. New questions about the evidence, and was there another reason why a son might implicate his dad . Who does the money go to . It goes to me. When over the edge continues. [cheering] come on, thats all it takes . Alright, guess ill bring a can of this stuff everywhere. Reddiwip everything. Yeah then ill become the worlds best dad. Made with real cream. Reddiwip. Instant greatification. Made with real cream. Burned me up and down, shno way to cool it. Every time you kiss me its like sunshine and whiskey like a bottle of jack straight to the head. One shot, two shot, copper tone red. Every time you kiss me its like sunshine and whiskey. Applebees handcrafted burgers. Any burger just 7. 99. Now thats eatin good in the neighborhood. Its ok that everyone ignores its fine. Drive. Because i get a safe driving bonus check every six months im accident free. And i dont share it with mom right, mom . Righttt. Safe driving bonus checks. Only from allstate. Switching to allstate is worth it. Welcome back to dateline extra. We continue now with over the edge. Once again chris janson. Stephen scharf is not guilty. 18 years after the death of his first wife, more than a decade after the investigation first stalled Stephen Scharf was being called a killer. But his defense attorney argued there was no new evidence in this case, no new eyewitnesses. Only new opinions. Im talking about the same old facts and circumstances. Bolink s said the state was hoping to win a murder conviction by painting his client as a terrible husband, that it couldnt prove he was a killer in 1992 and it couldnt prove it today. My client, Stephen Scharf, has been wrongfully charged with her death. And one reason the prosecutor couldnt prove murder had to do with sloppily police work, the defense attorney said, suggesting it had been like keystone cops on the palisades that fatal night. You never photographed the body before you moved it, did you . No, sir. Why didnt they take photographs . They destroyed the crime scene area. They didnt even bother to question potential eyewitnesses, he said. Instead, they cleared visitors from the look out. There might have been someone who saw something or heard something. There might have been. Theres a possibility that might have happened. And if police were so suspicious of his client two nights later, the defense said, why didnt they video their interview with him . That way jurors could have judged Stephen Scharfs supposedly odd demeanor for themselves. Why didnt you . Not an interrogation. He wasnt in custody. I dont know. The defense attorney also argued the defense attorney msad in his home. My client never said it was an accident. And as for that hammer. The hammer was examined by forensic experts. There was nothing found on that hammer. And the defense attorney pressed the medical examiner on her flipflop. Undetermined manner of death in 93. Now it was a homicide. Really . Are you trying to say that youre learning from your mistakes on this case . Crow may call them mistakes, sir. I did the best i could in 1992 documenting what i had observed with ms. Scharf. The medical examiner was helpful to the defense in one critical way, though. She determined that jody had been drunk the night she fell off the cliffs. Jody had a blood alcohol level of. 12. That was over the limit. It would be equivalent to approximately four average sized drinks or beer, Something Like that. A drunkful fall argued the defense. To back that up, the lawyer had his own heavy hitter. Famed pathologist dr. Cyril wekt. As high profile as the prosecutions dr. Baden. Only wekt had a totally different take on how jody scharf died. I would call this an accidental death. In wekts version which he demonstrated with all things a teddy bear, jody fell off a cliff onto jagged rocks below causing her mortal woods. Her body then catapulted. And out goes the body and hurtles into the air. Into the tree canopy that hurtles her into the abyss and into that tree. This is what i think happened to explain the injuries on the chest and hips. There was a bubble to burst in the prosecutions case, the motive for murder. Stephen scharf wasnt a greedy killer, he said. His client never made a claim on that insurance policy. It was only after the money was turned over to the state years later, he said, that Stephen Scharf even bothered to collect. Would it throw fuel on the fire not to do it. Well, i know i look guilty because i am guilty i better not make this claim. Youre damned if you do, youre damned if you dont. The other alleged motive, divorce, was flims assy well, he said. Jody and stephen had been talking break up for years. The prosecutor ppaints a picture of someone, who frankly isfurous about this divorce. No one person ever indicated that my client was furious over this divorce. They had talked about divorce for years. Maybe she was, you know, saying one thing and not following through. Though it is true Stephen Scharf did not want a divorce, he says he wanted to give the marriage another chance. And as for that former girlfriend, terry scofield, she recounted stephens missteyster statement just before jodys death. Just give me until the september and everything will be okay, a lot of the stress will be gone. The defense Attorney Says that was stephens clumsy way of trying to dump his girlfriends. And speaking of which, he added, those other women did not bother jody at all. She was seeing other people herself. The person on the bottom half in both of those is who . Jody scharf. The Record Keeper of dating service testified that jodys name was on an application. She even checked off the interests shed like to share with a mate. The attorney offered that as proof of stephen and jodys open marriage. But what really wrinkled the defense, what had torn at the heart of Stephen Scharf was the testimony of his son, jonathan. I remember her showing me her bruises. He had painted his father as a brute and possibly a killer. I never hit jody. It made me sick to my stomach. The young man wasnt to be believed, said the lawyer. For one thing when police interviewed jonathan back in 2008 the young man described his dad as a good guy. I think he was a, you know, fairly decent guy. It was only after detectives told him his dad had just been arrested that the son turned on his father. She got coffee thrown at her by him. Before you found out that your dad was arrested, did you lie . Yes. And did you lie more than once . Yes. Why would jonathan turn on his father and lie . The defense lawyer said it was jonathan, not his dad who was motivated by greed. If Stephen Scharf was convicted, his son would get all that insurance money. Whos the money go to . It goes to me. In the end the lawyer called Stephen Scharfs son a spoiled brat. That sounds like some spoiled kid. Who was not a credible witness. In closing, he insisted this wasnt a murder case. Just a sad story about a woman who tumbled drunkenly to her death. This case is an accident. Nothing more, nothing less. Soon it would be in the hands of a jury. Coming up. It was a light bulb. You couldnt help but think, thats interesting. The jurors speak. What would they decide . Stephen, did you kill your wife, jody . The verdict when over the edge continues. Its 6 am. 40 million americans are waking up to a gillette shave. And at our factory in boston, more than a thousand workers are starting their day building on over a hundred years of heritage, craftsmanship and innovation. Today were bringing you americas number one shave at lower prices every day. Putting money back in the pockets of millions of americans. As one of those workers, im proud to bring you gillette quality for less, because nobody can beat the men and women of gillette. Gillette the best a man can get. But some of us make somethinge make sommuch more. Dinner. With blue apron, any night is a chance to see what cooking can do. He gets the best deal on the Perfect Hotel by using. Tripadvisor thats because tripadvisor lets you start your trip on the right foot. By comparing prices from over 200 booking sites to find the right hotel for you at the lowest price. Saving you up to 30 youll be bathing in savings tripadvisor. Check the latest reviews and lowest prices. Successful people have onthey read more. On. How do they find the time . With audible. Audible has the Worlds Largest selection of audiobooks. For just 14. 95 a month, you get a creditgood for any audiobook. And you can roll your credits to the next month if you dont use them. Audible members get free, nohassle exchanges. And use the mobile app to listen anytime, anywhere. Start a 30day trial and your first audiobook is free. Listening, is the new reading. Text audio 12 to five hundred five hundred to start listening today. The jury is about to decide the fate of Stephen Scharf. Heres kris janson with a conclusion of our story. 18 years after a night that end in his wifes death off a cliff, Stephen Scharf stood accused of murder by the state of new jersey. And through it all one thing he wants you to know is this. He would never have laid a hand on his beloved jody, never. Stephen, did you kill your wife, jody . I did not hurt jody. I did not. Did you throw her off the palisades . No, i did not. I did not. I didnt hurt jody. I didnt push her. I didnt cause her to get hurt. I didnt kill my wife. We talked to Stephen Scharf at the burgen county jail, where he was held for more than two years after his arrest in 2008. He and his wife tina say theyve paid a high price for something he didnt do. We visited through a piece of plate glass. Our daughter is 2 1 2 and has still never been held by her father because we dont have contact visits. Its not just a tragedy for jody. Its a tragedy for john. Its a tragedy for my wife. Its a tragedy for my daughter and for myself. Still, he decided not to take the stand in his own defense but told dateline that what he first said years ago about his wifes death was the truth. I wish it didnt happen. I wish wed gone to the comedy club, but i didnt im innocent. But had the jury gotten that same message . When they walked into the that deliberating room for the first time, some jurors, in fact, planned to vote not guilty. There wasnt enough evidence for me. Thats what it was. Others were thinking guilty. It was several things. It was no one thing that had made up my mind. The jurors went back and forth over the evidence. And heres what they came to believe. That jody was likely drunk and hat her husband knew it. And if that was the case, why would he let her get so close to the edge of a cliff . As a husband knowing that your wife was drinking, would you bring her there . The jurors deliberated three days before deciding whether Stephen Scharf should be found guilty or not guilty of a single count of murder. On the charge of murder of jody anne scharf your verdict is . Guilty. Guilty. Later jurors said what united them with the testimony of jodys friend, telling them that jody was terrified of her husband. That possibly she was telling everyone if something happens to me it was my husband. And it was another woman in stephens life who also swayed the jury. Terry scofield recounting what stephen said to her weeks before jodys death, that his stress would soon be over. That was something that pushed me towards what we decided in the end. It was the light bulb. To them it wasnt jody who slipped but her husband with that menacing statement. They believed it wasnt just a fall from the cliffs. It was a coldblooded execution. Stephen scharf was sentenced to life in prison. He says the jurors condemned him not on the facts but for his and jodys tumultuous open marriage. So you think this was a moral judgment on the part of jurors . Yes. And i suppose some people would say, well, he was punished for his moral weakness. But this was a murder trial. But for rescuer michael chiofy its a fitting end to a story thats haunted him since that night on the palisades. This has never left me. Its been years. I went back there myself without people knowing it several times because it bothered me. Something was wrong. For Close Friends like marry anne hillforty, the verdict does not remove the sting of the loss. Im angry that he took the life of a beautiful person. Thats what bothers me the most. That he would do that and think he was going to get away it. He wanted the insurance money. He wanted his son, hed have the house. Hed have whatever he wanted, and shed be out of the way. Now, i think that was sad. Thats all for this edepositiedition of dateline extra. Im craig melvin. Thanks for watching. It was very exciting. They met in vegas. A professional poker player. He said he was making good money at it. A former trapeze artist. She fell for him. But she didnt gamble on this. I could smell the odor of decay and blood. Or this. At every turn there was another woman. Married, with a child and women in multiple cities. What else is he capable of . Capable of murder . He had a