by Chris Hansen, Dateline correspondent

I just wanted to thank you all for the overwhelming response we've received after our latest investigations. As you know, in the past few weeks we have used some of the same enterprising hidden camera investigative techniques that we use in our "To Catch A Predator" series to expose other crimes and scams. Apparently many of you yourselves have been targeted by the types of thieves we recently highlighted.

First, in "To Catch A Con Man," we tracked down some of the people behind those e-mails most of us have received offering millions, if only we'd put up some of our own cash to help a stranger in a far away land access an account only the e-mail sender knows about. I posed as an investor and turned the tables on the con men by exposing and then confronting them.

On March 27th, we aired the first part of our investigation into identity theft and credit card fraud, "To Catch An Identity Thief." Tonight, we are showing you the second part. I don't know that we've ever infiltrated a crime syndicate the way we have in this story. We started by getting into chat rooms that are virtual thieves markets for stolen credit card information and identities. We formed "Hansen Discount Electronics" on the web and "CH Delivery" so we could track this crime and the people committing it from the United States through Europe and into West Africa.

I have heard from thousands of you who have been victimized by the kinds of crimes we have investigated. It got me thinking about other stories we could do using our investigative techniques and hidden cameras. I am sure you have some great ideas as well and I want to hear about them. This is a great forum for you to tell me about the things you think should be investigated. Perhaps you have even documented some of these concerns on video. I may want you to share that with us as well to get us started.

Thanks again and I look forward to hearing from you.

by Sara James, Dateline correspondent

Jane Doe. Over my years as a reporter, I've read countless police reports about her, and always found that spare, staccato pseudonym doesn't do her justice. Is her real name Melanie or Janice or Grace?  Because behind that fig leaf of anonymity, there is a real woman: A woman whose life changed in an instant, a woman who has been subjected to violence, terror and heartache.  

The name and the anonymity are meant to protect, as a sort of verbal shield.  But sometimes it's necessary to put down a shield to fight a battle. At least, that was the case for one woman  we met.  She was a woman ready to reclaim her identity. To be Jane Doe No More. A woman named Donna Palomba.

When I met Donna at lunch a couple of years ago, I was impressed. She's a warm, dynamic woman, successful in business and clearly devoted to her husband and children. But I was also struck by her natural reserve.  She's clearly a very private person.  So why choose to go public? Why tell her story on television?  Why start a Web site called "Jane Doe No More"? 
 
The reasons couldn't be more obvious. Strong as she is, Donna knows firsthand how devastating it is to be raped. She also knows that the aftermath -- the police, hospital, court system -- can be another ordeal. Strong as she is, she acknowledges she could have used assistance, both in coping with the emotional fallout of her attack, as well as negotiating the complicated legal labyrinth.  Donna's goal -- like most good ideas -- is both deceptively simple and potentially far-reaching.  She wants to reach the other Jane Does.  Give them the support they need.  Remind them that, while they may choose to stay anonymous, which is just fine, they shouldn't feel they must.  After all, they did nothing wrong.   They were victims of crime.   

Since 2007, Donna has addressed thousands of people - students, law enforcement and social service professionals.  Jane Doe No More, through janedoenomore.org, has reached tens of thousands more. And every day Donna feels more certain that going public was not just the right thing to do - it was the only thing she could do to help change the way society treats sexual assault victims. 

I remember a day when it was difficult to talk about breast cancer because no one wanted to mention the word "breast" in public.  These days, no one thinks twice.  I hope the day will come when no woman feels any shame about rape.  Perhaps then, there will indeed be Jane Doe No More.

Click here to see Sara James' report, "The Man Behind the Mask."

Talk about a fantastic career: The man you'll meet on the broadcast tonight worked as a prestigious doctor, a dedicated pastor, a Red Cross fundraiser.

But his resume was most remarkable for what wasn't on it: one ounce of truth.

What this man really was was the ultimate con artist -- a guy who's played more roles than DeNiro. You'll be surprised at who fell for his tricks. The question is: Will you?

Josh Mankiewicz brings us the tall tale of "The Great Pretender."

Join us Dateline Tuesday, April 24, 8 p.m./7 C.

by Stone Phillips, Dateline anchor

When Seung-Hui Cho mailed his "multi-media manifesto" to NBC News, he clearly was hoping that at least some of what he sent would find its way onto the airwaves.  It did.  And we entered a new era of crime coverage and a minefield of potential media manipulation.
 
Clearly, Cho knew his rampage would be worthy of national news coverage.  Why else would he send his  diatribe to NBC headquarters in New York?  By including photographs of himself with his last words and testament he also believed he could control the images emblazoned forever in the public's mind.    

There is no question in my mind that NBC News made the right decision to inform the public about the package it received-- when it was sent and the content it contained.   I also believe that when it comes to broadcasting the actual material less is more.   Cho's words and demeanor provide some insight into his troubled mind, notably his glowing references to the Columbine killers.  But his ranting warrants only the most limited airtime, lest we reward him with a platform to spew his hate and a higher place in the pantheon of mass murderers.  This was not an interview or cross-examination.  There was no opportunity to probe or challenge Cho in a way that might have yielded greater insights to aid the healing process or prevent future acts of madness.  This was Cho's parting shot to the world he loathed, a dictated legacy left for us to disseminate.  In such a case, airing more than the the briefest of soundbites, placed in careful context, would only grant the killer's wish.       
    
As disturbing as they are, I also see some news value in the photographs of Cho brandishing weapons, pointing a gun straight into the camera and striking movie poster poses.  They speak to his self-image and grandiose delusions.  They also reveal more about the level of premeditation and planning that went into the attack.  But, again, there is a downside to broadcasting Cho's personal photo gallery favorites.  Surfacing just days after the massacre, the photographs were clearly going to stir strong emotions.  Sensitivity to the victims' families and friends is a major concern.  Playing into the killer's hands is another.  As former FBI profiler Clint Van Zandt has suggested, putting these images on the air may well have handed Cho the victory he wanted most.  Cho, the marauder.  Cho, the martyr.  Cho, the avenger, unafraid to die.  Of course, he was none of those.  But that's how he saw himself.  That's how he wanted to be seen and remembered.  He chose the poses.  We aired them, and proliferation was inevitable.  Based on the widespread pick-up the pictures received in media outlets all over the world, the editorial issue was not so much whether to publish, but how much and for how long.   There is no formula for that.  Ultimately, it comes down to the editing process in each newsroom, something organizations like NBC News undertake with careful deliberation.

These decisions are not easy;  self-censorship carries its own set of dangers. Perhaps, if some purpose is served by all of this, it lies in the questions we ask ourselves.
    
Cho is dead and gone.  Tragically, so are the 32 Virginia Tech students and teachers he killed.  What we are left to ponder is the balance we strike between the need to inform and the signal we send to other deranged individuals.   Horrific acts of violence must be covered.  A sound editorial process, with the sensitivity and restraint that is always the hallmark of solid news judgment, is critical.  Anything less puts us on a perilous path, indeed, where culprits can count on the media to make their venomous voices heard and give them the power to play photo editor from the grave.     

by Keith Morrison, Dateline correspondent

 To explore the story of Eric Volz is to take a walk in a nightmare.  Volz is the young American accused, charged and convicted of murdering his ex-girlfriend, the beautiful Doris, the jewel of San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua.

We arrived in that poor but truly lovely country in the midst of a media war -- the Nicaraguan media (or at least, the main national tabloid paper), which printed giant headlines declaring Volz's guilt, versus a growing U.S.-based Internet campaign launched by friends and family in an effort to show he was subjected to an obscene perversion of justice.

"Don't misunderstand," Nicaraguans told us, "We're not anti-American.  But we don't want that rich 'gringo' to avoid paying for his crime." 

  The basic facts are these:  Eric, an ambitious young American, gets involved in San Juan's booming real estate market.  He starts a magazine, 'El Puente,' (the bridge), whose stated mission is to encourage responsible development in Central America. He takes up with the prettiest girl in town, Doris, who is soon in his company at all hours of the night and day. 

But soon Volz finds San Juan too small for his publishing ambitions.  He moves the enterprise to Managua, and plans a further move to Costa Rica.

Doris, left behind in San Juan, stays in touch with Eric but soon has a new boyfriend.  Then, last November, as Eric Volz is meeting with colleagues at his office in Managua, he gets a phone call from San Juan:  Doris has been brutally raped and murdered.

How Volz becomes the chief suspect, and then the most famous inmate in Nicaragua's Tipitapa prison is a twisted tale worthy of Franz Kafka.

In this case, the defendant's apparently impeccable alibi, supported by no fewer than 10 people, is thrown out by the judge, as angry crowds chant for his conviction, and threaten to lynch him.  It's a case in which the defendant hires his own armed guards, and still is chased through town by the mob.

And yet?  When we visited Eric Volz in Tipitapa prison, just outside Managua, we were offered the utmost courtesy by every official from the warden to the lowliest guard.  We had wondered, before we arrived if Volz was in some sense a stand-in for Nicaraguan anger at America.  But, in Managua, in San Juan, we encountered no hostility at all.

Public anger was reserved instead for a man who - whether you find yourself attracted to his character, or repelled - could simply not have been anywhere near the ugly crime that ended the life of the beautiful Doris.

Now, his fate is in the hands of a panel of judges set to review the evidence and hear his appeal.  They could affirm his 30-year jail sentence, order a new trial, or set him free.  "In this country," an observer told us,"this case is like O.J. Simpson."  In a matter of days, much of Nicaragua will be watching to see what happens to Eric Volz.

Keith Morrison's report, 'Murder by the Sea', aired Dateline Sunday, April 22, 8 p.m. Read a transcript and watch the full broadcast here. Watch YouTube videos arguing this case.

by Chris Hansen, Dateline correspondent

36 days ago, Cho Seung-Hui bought a gun at a shop in Roanoke, Virginia, a Glock 19.  I spoke with the owner of the Roanoke firearms Tusday afternoon, who told me that it was a "typical sale."

Cho, who was a resident alien, had three forms of ID, so he produced a Va. driver's license that established residency, a checkbook that matched, and his INS card. The gun shop did a background check, and Cho cleared the state police and federal computers. He was able to take the gun home with him after paying for it with a credit card.

The owner says Cho didn't make employees suspicious, that he seemed like a typical clean-cut college kid.

"I can't even begin to describe how I feel," says John, the owner. "One death would have been to many. This is horrible."

Gun sales in Virginia have been more than a sticking point with gun control advocates, not to mention New York City. NBC News analyst Michael Sheehan, who oversaw counterterrorism for the New York City Police Department, tells us many guns bought in Virginia end up on New York streets.

In the Virginia tech case, Cho purchased that 9mm legally. Earlier in February, he bought a 22-caliber handgun at a local Blacksburg, Virginia pawn shop.

by Hoda Kotb, Dateline correspodent and Virginia Tech graduate

My report on "Dateline" tonight is about the virtual embrace the world has been giving Virginia Tech – online, by loving friends and sympathetic strangers.

It warmed up my heart and my keyboard hearing from all of you. I received dozens of emails from old college friends, and hundreds of blog responses from my post/piece on "Dateline" last night.

As Stone said on tonight's broadcast, tragedies of this magnitude have a way of making the world a very small place. With the help of the Internet in times like this, the world does indeed become a village.

Click here to watch video of Hoda's report.

by Hoda Kotb, Dateline correspondent and Virginia Tech graduate

Virginia Tech is where  went to college, it's where my brother went to college, it's where my sister went to college. We all went there and the decision was a no-brainer. There wasn't another school in the country we wanted to go to.

Today, I'm wearing orange, one of Virginia Tech's colors. The school colors are actually maroon and orange. I remember in college, and we didn't love the color scheme— we thought the two colors clashed. Today, there is not another color I would rather be wearing.

When most people think of Virginia Tech, the very first thing that comes into mind is sports: football and basketball. All you would see during Virginia Tech's football season was a sea of maroon and orange. You would hear the chant in the crowd. I can still hear it in my head, "Hokie, hokie, hokie high...Tech, Tech V-P-I."

When you go to Tech, it's in your blood. I think of the kind of camaraderie and the pride -- they call it "hokie pride." It sounds corny, but it is how proud the students are of their school.

I never imagined that this is the way Virginia Tech would likely go down in history.  I know everyone says that about their town: "Not my town, my town is a little town," or "It would never happen in my neighborhood."

But Virginia Tech is a place away from the big cities. It is away from the big city problems, away from all of it. It felt insulated. It felt safe. I never felt uncomfortable walking on that campus.

Then to hear what happened at Tech today, at my school. I couldn't believe it—I still can't.

It was all just so surreal today to see the images on television. You can't help but look at those images. I have a girlfriend that's a professor there. Was that her being carried out on a stretcher? Is she safe? I have friends who work on campus, friends in the communications department.

The school always meant something really warm and fuzzy to me. Today, I have a horribly sad feeling.

But I'm really hopeful because out of the worst tragedy, you watch people rise up. And it will happen on the campus of Virginia Tech.

Those students will rise up. I'll bet on that.

Click here to watch VIDEO of Hoda's recollection.

by Josh Mankiewicz, Dateline correspondent

Don Imus is gone. But will the kind of language that got him fired disappear with him? Don't bet on it. Rap and hip-hop artists routinely use many of those same words -- and worse -- all while depicting women as little more than sex partners.

Shock radio is alive and well. Howard Stern's contract is worth $500 million.

And more than a week after the debate started over where funny ends and offensive begins, comedians at the Comedy Union in Los Angeles were finding that line—and erasing it. So is Imus' firing the end of this debate? Or just the beginning?

Jasmyne Cannick writes and blogs about racial and civil rights issues. And about the long running battle by black Americans against degrading themes in music and popular culture.

Jasmyne Cannick:   It's easy to go after the Imuses.  The challenge now is to go after the people in your own community. There's not a day that I get up and get in my car that I don't pass by someone who is blaring lyrics of "ho," b- words, n-words.  Often times it's African-American women who are listening to these lyrics as well. 

Josh Mankiewicz: And that's more offensive to you than anything Don Imus says?

Cannick: Absolutely. The kids in my neighborhood don't know who Don Imus is.  They've never heard of him.  But they do know who Snoop Dogg is.  They know who all of those rappers are.

And this week it was rapper Snoop Dogg who said it was acceptable for black rap artists to use the same language Imus did, because, he said, those songs come from rappers'  minds and souls. They're being purchased by people of all colors. Jasmyne Cannick isn't buying.

Cannick: If we expect for other races to not disrespect us, we have to stop disrespecting ourselves.  There are very few cultures that refer to each other with degrading names.  Why is that African-Americans see no problem with it in their rap lyrics?

Mankiewicz: The argument on the other side of that is there's a market for that.  There are people buying those rap CDs not in spite of those lyrics but because of them.  So, why should an artist change if their product is selling?

Cannick: Yeah, at the end of the day it does all come down to money. But again, maybe we can actually talk about why we do go and buy that, why we do support that. 

And that same free-market argument applies to talk radio as well.

Mankiewicz: Is this the end of insulting, degrading language on the radio?

Sarah McBride, covers radio for the Wall Street Journal: God, no.  Absolutely not.  We may a see a short die down of insulting, degrading language on the radio and then it's gonna be back.  I think hosts are being really careful about what they say right now.  But, as with all these situations, it blows over and then people go—back to as much as they can get away with.

Because on talk radio, controversy sells.

McBride: The more controversial they are, the bigger the audience they get, the higher the ratings and the more advertisers are prepared to pay to be on those shows.  So, of course you wanna push the envelope if you wanna be a successful national radio host and that's pretty hard.

Comedian Chris Spencer tours nationally. He's not afraid to push the envelope, and says nothing that's happened in the last week will make him change his act.

Mankiewciz: Once you start sugarcoating or sort of sanding down the harder edges of your act, is that a good thing?

Chris Spencer, comedian: No, then I won't be me, know what I mean?  This right here, this forum is for me to be able to shock, to be edgy, to say things that other people are thinking and my goal is to make it funny.  When it's not funny, is when it becomes offensive.

Mankiewicz: So if you get seasick, don't join the Navy.

Spencer: Bingo. 

If there is to be any long-lasting impact from the fall of Imus, it's likely to be felt more on public airwaves than it will be in a comedy club where you make the choice to hear someone's act. In this business, if you're not funny, you're out of business.

Comedians like Tommy Chunn say audiences aren't paying to right social wrongs.

Mankiewicz: The marketplace plays a big role in this, doesn't it?

Tommy Chunn: The marketplace plays a huge role in what you say, where you say it, as a standup.

Mankiewicz: Because if people laugh, that means it worked.

Chunn: You've got to go with it.  

But remember, until eleven days ago it worked for Don Imus. That line between what's entertaining and what's degrading has been blurring for a long time. It didn't start with Imus, and it's unlikely to end now.

Jasmyne Cannick says it comes down to simple economics. If you stop buying it, they'll stop selling it.

Cannick: We make these talk show hosts.  We make them by buying their albums and listening to their shows and supporting them. You know, we have to shift our way of thinking if we really want to make an institutional change.  And until the majority of us are ready to do that, it's not going to happen.

It won't be easy to change our diet of cultural junk food.    A lot of people get rich feeding at that trough. In fact, if broadcasting history is any guide, Mr. Imus may be back on the air before too long... because whatever his sins, he attracted an audience.

by Lee Kamlet, Dateline producer

Just before Labor Day last summer, I flew to Albuquerque NM, expecting to attend a court hearing which might shed some light on one of the worst crime sprees in the city's history.

Five people had been killed on the same day in August 2005. The first shooting was in the early morning. A state transportation department worker was killed outside of a maintenance garage on the edge of town. Later that afternoon, on the opposite side of the city, two young men were killed at the motorcycle shop where they worked. Then in the late evening, two police officers who were on what police say was a routine assignment, were killed in a gun battle just on the outskirts of downtown.

The killings seemed random. There was no obvious link between the victims, their locations, or the circumstances under which they were killed.  Police were busy all day chasing down plausible suspects.  Then, shortly after the two officers were shot, police say they put together the clues they had been assembling from the various crimes scenes, and discovered that the shootings were linked after all, committed by one man.  His name is John Hyde.

As a young man, Hyde was diagnosed as suffering from schizophrenia and paranoia.  For years, he struggled to cope with the inner demons that haunted him. He tried various medications that seemed to work for a short time.  But more often than not, he said the side effects from the medication were worse that the ailments. About 10 months before the shootings, his behavior changed.  He became convinced that he had been misdiagnosed.  He began wearing black nail polish, stopped grooming himself, and began talking about Satan.  Then on August 18, 2005, police say John Hyde snapped, and killed 5 people.

The haunting question of course is, why?  Why would a man who had no history of violence suddenly kill five people?

Which brings us back to the hearing last summer.  Since his arrest, John Hyde has been ruled incompetent to stand trial, and has been held in the New Mexico State Hospital.  The hearing was called to determine if his condition had changed.   As long as he remains incompetent, he cannot be tried for the murders.  And to state the obvious, if he can't be tried, he can't be punished if he's found guilty.  And there are many people in Albuquerque who want him to get the ultimate punishment--the death penalty.

The district attorney in Albuquerque had planned to use the hearing as a forum to call dozens of witnesses, in order to get their testimony on the record about the events of that awful day.  The prosecution's fear is that the longer John Hyde remains in the hospital, witness will forget what they know, or worse yet, the witnesses themselves will die, and their testimony will be lost.

Just before the hearing was to begin, Hyde's attorneys filed an emergency motion to stop it.  The hearing, they said, was unnecessary.  They conceded the state could prove that Hyde is a danger to himself and to the community.  Beyond that, they say that the competency hearing would have become a media spectacle and damaged John Hyde's chances for a fair trial, if one is ever held.

The question about the need for the hearing is now before the New Mexico Court of Appeals, which has given no sign when it will reach a decision.  And even if the court rules soon, its decision is almost certain to be appealed to the New Mexico Supreme Court, and possibly the U.S. Supreme Court.  As long as the question remains in the court system, Hyde himself will remain in the state hospital. 

The situation has left the city divided.  Some people told me they are angry that John Hyde has not had to account for his actions.  Others said that, as horrified as they are about the events of that day,  John Hyde deserves the full protection of the law, like any other citizen. 

Meanwhile, John Hyde remains the only person who really knows for certain why he did what he did that day.

With more than a million cars being stolen each year-- one every 30 seconds according to experts-- insurance rates are rising in this country because this lucrative crime has proven to be difficult for investigators to solve.

In attempt to get stolen cars back to the owners and put a dent into their community's auto theft rate, the Houston Police Department set up a fencing operation in which undercover policeman pose as criminals who buy cars and other contraband.

They allowed "Dateline" to come along and capture it all on their hidden cameras.  "To Catch a Car Thief," airing on Tuesday, April 10 (8:00 pm/et), offers viewers a rare glimpse into the world of undercover cops with its dangers and disappointments, risks and rewards.

Victoria Corderi goes undercover with the Houston Police Department and then confronts the men caught in fencing operation.

Airs tonight, April 10, Dateline NBC at 8 p.m./7 C. For a list of cars most likely stolen, click here. For some tips on how to protect yourself and your vehicle, click here.

NBC News' Chris Hansen traveled to Michigan to investigate the mysterious disappearance of two young attorneys on Lake Huron while on a boat trip August 2005. The body of Lana Stempien, a former model, was recovered, but her boyfriend, Chuck Rutherford, is still missing. The case was officially ruled an accident, but with questions and suspicious clues mounting, many people are wondering if it could have been something else.

In a multi-part investigative report, which aired Friday, Jan 13, 9 p.m. ET and Wednesday, Oct. 11, Hansen uncovers new clues as he explores the many unanswered questions that suggest foul play may be involved. He interviews the last known people to see the couple alive, investigators, and the anguished family of Lana Stempien, who is convinced she did not enter the water voluntarily.

What did you think of the report?

Some viewer theories

A lot of people wrote in their own theories on what happened on that lake. Below is a selection:

I have no information about your daughter. I just wanted to write because I just watched Dateline and I really feel you are so right to keep looking for answers.  My heart goes out to you as I have lost my only brother. Not foul play, but it is still a loss. I can't imagine how I would be handle it if I did not know how he died. I pray that both families find the answer. One other thing. --Beth Erickson, Pinellas Park, Fla.

I was just wondering if anyone had looked into the satellite images of that day, in that area? could help if maybe another boat was in the area. --Lory, Calif.

This is so sad. Has anyone done fingerprints on the vodka bottle? What I'm really writing about is that the Great Lakes have multiple mysteries and one of them is that bodies of people that perish in one lake end up in another. Some people who have drowned in Lk Superior never have been found or have turned up in Houghton Lake via the underground water system. --Jackie,
Walker, Mich.

Most likely accidental. CO poisoning is insidious. Has happened on Lake Powell with fatal results. In a 20 mph wind, boat running off plane, downwind, [about 15 mph] a plume of CO will envelope cockpit. I am a boater for 62 years and have also sufferred from an almost fatal CO incident. --Richard Main, J.D., Ventura, Calif.

I'm a watcher of the program Court TV. On a lot of the shows, they have a physic helping many police departments with unsolved cases. I thought maybe you could and should look in to that . Just A thought. May God bless you. --Sandy Carrabine, Columbus, Ohio

Need to investigate the possibility of lethal doses of carbon monoxide not only at the boat's exhaust but also on the rear deck. Test's done by federal agencies have shown that under the right conditions lethal doses of carbon monoxide have killed hundreds of people both in the water and on the deck of various vessels. Maybe Lana didn't intend to go in the water that's why her jewelry was still on her. Maybe they both were still on the boat when they were overcome by the carbon monoxide. --Brian Heath, Hodgenville, Ky.

Theory: Perhaps Chuck was drunk, fell over board, Lana ran to his aide, only wearing a T-shirt and shoes, hastily stripped down, to jump in and rescue him. In the process she steps on the dial and tears her shoe taking it off or the tear was already there. Chuck obviously had a drinking problem, and there was an empty bottle of vodka. While trying to get him up to or on the dive platform she inhales the exhaust fumes, having in her haste to rescue him neglected to lower the dive ladder, leaving her struggling at the back of the boat. --Paul Gray, Belmont, Ma.

by Stone Phillips (Dateline anchor)

When I interviewed David Graham for Dateline shortly after his murder conviction in 1998, the handsome former Air Force Academy cadet looked me straight in the eye and swore he wasn't even there the night 16-year-old Adrianne Jones was killed.

He blamed it on his girlfriend.

Graham insisted it was Diane Zamora who picked Adrianne up that night, Diane who drove her to a secluded road in Grand Prairie, Texas, and Diane who shot her in the head. Of course, he was lying through his teeth and later admitted as much. In a recent letter to Dateline producer Ellen Sherman, Graham described his interview with me as "not (his) finest hour."

He blamed it on his lawyer.

Given Graham's affinity for fabrication, I wondered what my interview with Diane Zamora would be like. Like Graham, she had been convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison. Was the former mid-shipman cut from the same cloth? Or, nearly a decade after the crime, would she tell me the truth?

When she approached our camera position from behind a glass partition, Diane appeared demure and depressed. The defiant look she had worn through much of her trial had disappeared, but not for long.

Zamora claimed that she was the victim of verbal and sexual abuse by David Graham, misconduct by police, and mistakes by a jury she believes ignored exculpatory evidence. Yes, she was wrong not to have gone to police right after the murder. Yes, she obstructed justice by helping to cover up the crime for nine months. But Zamora insisted she only went along that night to question Adrianne Jones, not to kill her. It was Graham who planned the murder, she said, and Graham who carried it out.

Zamora told me all she wanted was for people to take a closer look at the evidence. Dateline did. And, indeed, looking back at her trial there was testimony from prosecution witnesses to support some of her claims. But there are also more than a few contradictions in her story.

In the weeks following the interview, a thought occurred to me. Years earlier, during a previous visit with Zamora, she had mentioned to me that she wished she could take a lie detector test. She said her story was the only one that fit the facts and seemed confident that she would pass. I wondered if that was something she was still interested in doing.

So, as we finished preparing our report, I wrote Diane a letter reminding her of our conversation and telling her that Dateline might be able to arrange a polygraph if she was willing to take one. She wrote us back immediately. Her answer was yes. Her lawyer approved. She took the test.

We all knew it wouldn't change anything legally.

Still, the results might give viewers something more to consider in this classic "he said, she said." Zamora saw it as an opportunity to salvage some dignity and, perhaps, a degree of vindication. If not for herself, she said, it was worth doing for her mother, who has stood by Diane from the beginning. She knew that we were going to broadcast the results, no matter what the outcome. I would return to the prison and, with cameras rolling, give her the results.

It would be a first for Zamora... and me.

In my 25 years as a news correspondent, I had never gone back to an interview subject with the results of a lie detector test. Suffice to say, the tension was running high-- a convicted murderer, proclaiming her innocence, presented with the outcome of a long-awaited truth test.

When it was over, we both got up from our chairs. Drained.

Stone Phillips' report on the case airs Dateline Sunday, April 8, 8 p.m.