Page 13 - Larry Crouch News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

>> welcome back to "dateline." even though investigators had no physical evidence tying her husband dave to the crime, they did uncover some information about possible financial wrongdoing on his part. police considered it strong enough to warrant an arrest, but, could they get the prosecutor to agree? here with more of our story is keith morrison. >> they kept pushing and pushing. and we kept sitting back. >> the prosecutor at the time, larry crouch, told his investigators he would not charge dave hawk with the murder of his ex-wife debbie even after it was obvious this popular single mother ...

Money. you took a trip to hawaii with your girlfriend. you paid off your divorce attorney's fees and money you took from the first set of trusts by taking $60,000 out of the kids' second trust if under. >> the money was use fod are the children. >> which child drove the lexus. >> all three children were driven in the lexus. >> which child went to whawaii n vacation. >> perhaps that was my own money. the pros kurtser never figure. >> you made it hard because you were mixing up ut trust fund money all the time. frankly, that's what skamg artists do. >> why didn't you go get a job? i had a job. >...

Window and got somebody to give him a ride to debbie's house and entered the bedroom. >> i think he tried the stun gun on her and she screamed loudly and he struck her with something more than once and, at that point i assume he suffocated her. >> then, said the prosecutor he must have dragged her body to the garage, put her into her own van, disposed of her somewhere and drove the van to fresno and defendant it in a high crime zone. how did he get home? that accomplice must are have picked hup up and drove him book. >> there was no body, no dna, no forensic evidence to show he had been at the...

Years after debbie's disappearance, her body still hadn't been found, and there was no new evidence tying dave from to the murder. >> dave starts sur veiling our office, police officers. eventually starts driving by an investigators home. it was getting pretty concerning out there. >> time to move. on may 29, 2008 dave was arrested an charged with first-degree murder and a special circumstance, murder for financial gain. he pleaded not guilty. when the trial finally began more than a year later, dave faced murder and the earlier embezzle. charges together. prosecutor offered the jury this theo...

That's what i did. >> he basically offered that i don't think she's ever going to be found. >> did it work? >> listen to prosecutor larry crouch. he went oh no, why they are putting that in? is it i thought it was harmful. >> though, what the jury thought, no one could say. then there was inevitably a conversation about whether he would testify. >> i told them i wanted to testify. >> an idea dave's attorneys did not like one bit. >> dave is a combative individual. very prideful, offended easily. >> he think he's smart and hates for anybody to think es a not smart. he'd be perfect fod fodder fo...