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Subscribe to RSSMeet the producer of 'The Beauty and the Beast Mystery', a Dateline report that aired Friday, Feb. 25:
Hi, my name is: Justin Smith.
I've been: a Dateline producer for 8 years.
When I first came across this story, I thought to myself: Here is an unusual case. A woman is dead, and only two possible causes are being investigated. Either it was an accident, or her husband killed her. Without the twists and turns, the multiple suspects, that complicate a lot of investigations, this case came down to the evidence, no matter how subtle it was.
My inspirations as a storyteller: I am always impressed by the stories my Dateline colleagues tell. With this case, I was inspired by Dennis Murphy's talent as a writer and interviewer. And my wife, who writes narrative nonfiction, is constantly inspiring me.
The one thing I'll never forget about doing this story: I was born in New York and still live here, so as a city-dweller, I'll never forget Indiana hospitality and how openly everyone welcomed our team.
The most interesting person I met along the way: I met many interesting people. One who stands out is Dr. Greg Davis, the defense pathologist, someone for whom the tiniest bits of evidence speak so loudly.
The most striking image I saw: Scott and Lisa's wedding video. He dressed as the Beast and danced with his Beauty to the Disney theme song. I've been to a lot of weddings, but I know if I had been a guest at that one it would have been a memorable moment.
The most memorable words I heard: From Christine Smith, Lisa Pattison's sister, in a letter she wrote to Lisa after her death: "It seems like you are on a long trip, away from me. I have constant reminders of you and reach out to you and cannot find you ... I will wait patiently until I can meet up with you and we can be together ... "
What is striking about the alleged weapon in this case: A weight bench is associated with physical health, not harm.
Biggest challenge while doing this story: Choosing what to put into an hour. Everyone gave interesting, and often heartbreaking, interviews. Lisa's family told emotional stories of loss. It's difficult with any story to pick and choose based on time constraints.
In a word, this is really a Dateline story about: Evidence - was there enough to convince the jury.
Last but not least, in general, I wish: To thank everyone who trusted us with their story.
Thanks for watching!
Leave a Comment:
Justin,
Thanks for your thoughts on your piece. Greg Davis is my cousin. He is extraordinaly insightful, intelligent, honest, hard working....and open minded. I was hoping to see more of him, but I know there is only so much you can pack into an hour with multitudes of commercials. I am glad you acknowledged your thoughts about Greg in your post. He probably has not seen it, so I will pass it on to him. What was the defendants final sentence? I think, lide the jurors he did it too.....
Judy Davis King
Hi Judy - I'm his cousin on his mom's side.
What's the single word? Didn't see it!
Justin- Thank you on behalf of the family. I wanted to let everyone know that you have been very respectful to our family throughout this process. Many people may not know the time and energy that you and others put into these shows. The research and interviews are very extensive. Thank you for being very respectful to Dillon and my Mother. Everyone from Dennis Murphy to the camera man were very kind. But, I was most impressed with your compassion for my sister that I saw in your eyes and heard in your voice when working with you. Your passion came through in the show. Thank you for telling her story and letting others know how special Lisa was to all of us. We as a family will continue to share her story to help others in domestic violence situations.
I was surprised it was never mentioned that during the changing of his outfits seen on the video tape,he had changed into gym shorts. I felt like he had lured his wife down to the work out room and that is why he was wearing the shorts,also,with the extra safety pieces sitting on the floor next to the machine it was like he maybe asked her to lay there while he "tested" the safety feature out...just some insight I wanted to share after watching this story. My heart goes out to her family.
Heather- She trusted him.
I thought the episode was very well done, Justin. Lisa was my dear, dear childhood friend. From the ages of about 4-10 years old when we lived right across the street from eachother, I can't recall a single day I didn't see her or play with her. I always say "I have such a bad memory", but not when it comes to the wonderful memories I had with my childhood pal Lisa. I could never imagine back during our innocent childhood years that this would be her fate.
My heart breaks for her entire family but most of all for her son Dillon. She sent me a few letters before we lost contact back in the late 90's. What I remember most about those letters was how much she talked about Dillon and much I could tell she loved him just from reading the words she wrote. What a handsome young man he has become--and my whole family can't believe how much he resembles his wonderful mother.
I told Chris ("Chrissy" as I remember calling her back when we were young) I have never cried that long and that hard as I did after watching that episode last night. Today I just tried to focus on things like her beautiful smile, our wonderful memories, and the love for Lisa I saw in her mom, Dillon and Chris' eyes when they spoke of her. I know we will all see her again one day....that, I am sure, is what I hope all who knew and loved her can focus on the most.
Thank you for your hard work in sharing this story last night.
God Bless.
The safety latches were more than likely not in use because he would have been "spotting" her instead. A "Spotter" has his/her hands on the barbell gently in case the person lifting the weights gets into trouble. As a body-builder, he would have said, "Let me spot you."
OMG....My heart goes out to the son...the reporting on this piece was excellent.
First sign this man was not quite great husband material....the ego in putting "Vandam look alike" on his business card!? He thought an awful lot of himself...bad sign.
I thought that it should have been very obvious and evident that a lady who had a hard time lifting Christmas decoration boxes at her work at a mall would never have been on a weight bench. (It looked like it said 100 pounds). That was very convincing to me that he was guilty and like the above writer said probably lured her trusting self onto the weight bench. It's so sad that the son Dillion trusted this stepfather as he went off to work with him that morning, my heart really goes out to him, and was so glad he seemed to be doing well. The stories where the wives trust their husbands make me the most upset and I pray God save their souls from hell. Glad the jury got this one right.
The case in Iowa where a 13 year old boy died under the same type of weight machine is my son. His name is Malcolm Magel. Not sure if Scott is guilty or not but I do know that it sounds like the exact same thing that happened to my son.
How do we submit story ideas? I have a story unfolding that involves social media, stalking, identity theft, a trail of broken hearts and unsuspecting men getting fired from their jobs for falling for an older woman posing as a young beautiful woman, luring them in and then going nuts. she's been doing it for years. she has a network of false "characters" that interact with each other online.
The police and FBI are currently investigating. The people in the small town where she lives are terrified. They have a suspect, she just does not know yet she is the suspect. She was discovered by a group of friends on Twitter who researched and tracked down her identity over the course of several weeks.
It's a crazy, juicy, story. She posed as a beautiful "perfect" 24 yo med student that claimed to have lung cancer among other tragedies. The family and some of her other victims are absolutely willing to tell their story.
The authorities will be busting her any day now.