48 Hours - The Informer

Episode Date: February 5, 2026

What do you do if you find out your best friends got away with murder? That's the question Jason Weir faced in 2002 when a friend confided in him that the death of an elderly woman, ruled an accident, was actually a case of murder. “48 Hours" Correspondent Susan Spencer reports. This classic "48 Hours" episode last aired on 9/30/2006. Watch all-new episodes of “48 Hours” on Saturdays, and stream on demand on Paramount+. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With the RBC Avion Visa, you can book any airline, any flight, any time. So start ticking off your travel list. Grand Canyon? Grand. Great Barrier Reef? Great. Galapagos? Galapago? Switch and get up to 55,000 avion points that never expire. Your idea of never missing out happens here. Conditions apply. Visit rbc.com slash avion. Marina Collabro was 84 years old. She was a retired hairdresser and the great aunt of Anthony Calabro.

From what I hear, one of the sweetest ladies you could have ever met. She used to cook clean, give him as much money as he ever needed. Any possible worry that he could ever have, she took care of. She spoiled him. She was healthy. She was living. It wasn't her time. December 19th, 2001.

Anthony Calabro had made a call to the Quincy Police that he had come home and found his great aunt at the foot of the stairs. Dead. My name is Susan Corkin and I am the prosecutor in this case. When the investigators responded to Marina Calabro's house that night, they found her with their face down in a fetal position, with blood coming from a head wound. It looked from all appearances that she may have fallen.

And for months after that, everyone believed that Marina Calabro had died as a result of an accidental fall down her stairs. My name's Jim Rell. Anthony Calabro was a friend of mine. Jason Ware was my close friend as well. I grew up with these people. We had a strong family-like relationship

between all of us, a bond. It was 10 months after the death that Jason told me a very disturbing secret. Jason said that Marina Claibro didn't really die in her own. She had some help from others. They made it look like an accident. I thought, how could this happen? I believed whatever else did.

I believe that she fell down the stairs. You know, it happens all the time. So you think, is it a hoax? Is it a hoax? Is it a joke? You never really think about it like what you would do until it actually happens to you. If I do go to the place, what is this going to do? What is this going to solve? The deed's already done, she's already dead.

There's no bringing her back now. As horrible as the sounds or as horrible as they may seem, Anthony and Jason were my best friends. What would you do? The Informer. My biggest passion was music. 22-year-old Jim Morel admits that what he used to consider good music, basically electronic composing. Certainly isn't everyone's cup of tea.

A few years ago, his compositions were designed to shock, as was his band. The name of my band was Electronic Kill Machine. The music was disturbing. It was a little on the aggressive side. At the same time, it was all in good fun. Nobody was really ever heard from it. Andy says it simply reflected the attitude of his crowd. At the time we thought we were untouchable, do whatever we wanted, and there was not going to be any sorts of consequences for any of our actions. Jim and his friends grew up in Norton, Massachusetts, a working-class town near Boston.

Norton's not that big of a town, there's not much there. His best friend was Jason Weir, who played drums in his band. Jason was a little rebellious, a little bit more wild. Another close friend, Anthony Calabro, was informally the manager. He's just a regular average guy, you know. And Tom Lally, who was a little older, just liked to hang out, eager to fit in. Tom was a funny guy. He was a really, really funny guy, which made it hard to fear Tom, but he wanted to be feared.

Kind of a tough guy? He kind of a tough guy thing, but he was, it's more of a goofy, just looking to go out and have a good time. Their backgrounds made the four a perfect fit. Whether it was a broken home or a troubled childhood, we were all just a little different, and that's why we really kind of just came together in this group of social misfits in some way or another, and we became kind of our own family. In the summer of 2001, Anthony, then at odds with both parents, left Norton and moved into the Quincy home of his 84-year-old great-a-a-a-old, she really loved this kid.

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, with all her heart. His aunt Donna Strassel was happy to hear the news. The truth is I thought it was the best thing for him to be with Aunt Marina because Aunt Marina had morals, rules. Marina only had recently retired as a hairdresser. She'd never married or had children of her own and she doted on Anthony like a favored son. Oh God, she did everything for Anthony. Dipping into her savings to support him. Whatever he wanted he got.

Whatever he wanted he got. And whenever they pleased, Marina even let it. Anthony's friends crash at her house, a house which at 84 she still maintained herself. She kept the inside of the house very well, climbed the stairs with no problems, out shoveled the snow. She was very healthy, very active. But just days before Christmas in 2001, Marina Calabro's independent life came to a tragic end. Around 11 p.m., Anthony called the police to report that when he and Tom Lally had come home that night, they had found her dead, lying at the bottom of the stairs.

The police took photos, but more or less as routine. They believed Marina Calabro had taken a terrible fall while carrying a bag of trash. And the medical examiner soon confirmed this death was an accident. Anthony was really upset. He became a lot more quiet, I think, more to himself. Even in death, Marina Calabro took care of her beloved great nephew. Her will left Anthony, half of her estate, which consisted of her $500,000 house, and another half million or so that she had squirled away over the years. She made good money as a hairdresser, worked all of her life, saved. And once Anthony got the money...

Anthony was very, very generous for this money. We could buy, do whatever we wanted. if we wanted to go nuts with anything we could. So they did. They went nuts with new equipment for the band, and even made a CD. We were in the verge of some pretty promising opportunities coming our way. We had a pretty good following.

But that all ended abruptly on October 13, 2002, nearly 10 months after Anthony's aunt had died. Jim and his best friend, Jason Weir, were at this restaurant chatting about Anthony's spending. when Jason offhandedly dropped that bombshell. He said, Marrily clabber didn't exactly die in our own. Jim was still reeling from the shock of that news when we first spoke to him three months later.

I just kind of sat there, I'm like, what do you mean? He's like, oh, Tom beat her to death. It's just like, that was pretty shocking. He said, Tom Lally beat her with a frying pan. In my mind, I'm picturing her grandmother. You know, someone's doing this to your grandmother. It's, I don't know. And what did he tell you he was doing at the time?

That's what I asked. At the end, I'm like, well, what were you doing? I mean, what involvement do you have? And he said I was just freaked out. And Anthony, where was he? Anthony was downstairs, waiting in the car. He was kind of keeping a lookout. Jim knew his friends weren't angels, but would they, could they?

Really murder an 84-year-old woman? What's like a friend you grew up with and it's like such a horrific thing? This is somebody you thought you knew. Right. Why do you think he suddenly decided to tell you? Why he told me? Because he, because he had a lot of trust in me. That trust left Jim Morel panicked over what to do, betray his friends, or protect their terrible secret.

Holding onto a secret like that would completely change who you want. It eats at you. It is someone that did not deserve to die. At same night, Jim told his father. Together, they went to the police. Taping the glass and said, you know, we have a murder report. He had no idea what he was in for. I was thinking I was going to do this all anonymously.

No, never know anything about me. Just walk in, walk out. I did my part, and I don't have to deal with anything. To his surprise, the police seemed to suspect him. Indignant, he volunteered to wear a walk. WIRE, convinced he could get Jason to confide again. This will prove my innocence, you know, because that's all you can do, because then it's just my word against them.

To his even greater surprise, the police liked the idea. What did you know about wearing a wire? I didn't know anything. I saw a bunch of movies. Three days later, Jim was wired and braced to betray his friend. I said, three days ago, you told me something pretty disturbing. And Jason was ready to talk. ready to talk. I shouldn't have told you, but I know I can trust you.

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October 2002. Jim Marell and Jason Weir were doing what they had done a thousand times before, just driving around Norton and hanging out. But this time, Jim Marell was wearing a wire, secretly pumping his friend Jason for details of Marina Collabro's murder. And he was feeling very guilty about it. Here it is, you know, a guy that feels so close and so confident telling you, and you're just going to go right around and stab him in the back.

and stab him in the back. The sake of my consciousness, tell me just exactly what happened, and then we will drop the subject forever. Detectives followed in an unmarked car, recording every word of what turned out to be a chilling tale of murder. Then what happened?

We're claimed he was paralyzed with shock. When he saw Tom Lally, suddenly attacked the 84-year-old woman with a frying pan and could only stand there and watch as she fought for her life. He wrestles with it. She falls with the stove and grabbed that yellow key kettle and bashed her face in with it. It took him a good 10, 15 minutes to kill him. Really?

Repeatedly, we're told Morel that although Lally did it, once the deed was done, he had no choice but to help cover it up. I can't believe you're gonna be a better life. We all want this house. We all need this. So we're in it together. And he matter-of-factly boasted that their extensive knowledge of forensics really had paid off. They were really, like, the forensic stuff.

They'd watch three-hour blocks of forensic files. There'd be hours and hours in the computer studying over case files. So he told you basically that they... They carried her down the steps. Carried her down the steps. And position her body so that it looks the way they think it would look if someone had fallen. Right. Throughout the whole thing, Jason said,

Marina's nephew Anthony was keeping watch outside. Jim kept Jason talking. How was that reaction to this? Would he like upset by this at all? And the longer he talked, the more disgusted Jim Morel became. First bad, you think, dude. It didn't affect me. Especially when Jason described Marina's final moments.

She was screaming for Anthony's name. She's like, Anthony, Anthony, help me, help me. And then I'm like, what did Tom do? And he just got real close to her and squeezed her. And he just whispered her in the ear. It's like, just go. Anthony wants it this way. It's better this way. Just give and let go. After that admission, Morel says he no longer felt any guilt about snitching on his friends.

I wanted nothing more than just a lash out and say, how could you just stand there and watch this? So I just said to myself, I'm going to screw you so unbelievably. And I said, so we're the murder weapons. Jason suddenly swerved off the road into a dark wooded. area by a pond and showed him. Looks how old dorm bat should be over there. The frying pan should be over there. And then he just took me and he drove me home.

It had been several hours, but Jim's ordeal finally was over. Nine days after that harrowing ride, police took 19-year-old Anthony Calabro, 17-year-old Jason Weir, and 21-year-old Thomas Lally into custody. All were charged with first-degree murder. Conviction would mean a life sentence. In a million years, I never thought I would go through something like this.

Jason's father, Rick Weir, heard about his son's arrest on the news. I'm just down to cry all over the place. Every time I saw it, I'd get the same feeling, you know, but there was nothing I could do for him at that. point. I couldn't get near him. I couldn't touch him, couldn't help him. I'm you pretty guilty or not guilty. Not guilty, Your Honor. And despite the evidence, I told you exactly what happened. The father is standing by his son, convinced that Jason didn't actually do anything to harm Marina Calabro.

I know he wouldn't. I know the type of person he is, he wouldn't do that. Come on, guys, let's go out. But this man doesn't buy Jason. man doesn't buy Jason's story at all. Come on, guys. Especially not the part about Jason being the bystander and Tom Lally, the murderer. I believe 100% that my nephew's story

is being used by someone else. Tom Lally always has been close to his nephew. His sister's son was named after him. I would describe Tom as a follower. And in this particular situation, he was the follower. and he believed in his friends. He may have run with the wrong crowd, Lally says, but Tom couldn't possibly murder anyone.

He's a good kid, definitely a giving kid. And he and Tom's mother regularly visit him. He's allowed two visits a week, and I always take at least one visit. Tom has insisted that it was Jason Weir who committed this crime. Do you believe that Jason Weir's story is right, but that the roles were switched? Yes. I believe that Tom got caught up in something that became too big, and he didn't know how to get out.

But a sister district attorney Susan Corcoran says that when the state got the case, it believed the three friends carefully plotted the murder together. The problem was proving it. They knew that he was going to inherit this house from her. And they did not want to wait for her to die. It's been more than two years since Jim Morel went to the police. Are you regarded as the betraying snitch, or are you the local hero? A little bit of both.

Two years since his information led to murder charges against his three closest pals. It felt like I just killed my best friends. People will say, you know, but you did the right thing. You shouldn't feel badly about this. Well, easier said than done. Jason Weir, Anthony Collabro, and Tom Lally sit behind bars, waiting to be tried for the death of 84-year-old Marina Collabro. Their arrests putting an abrupt end to those carefree days of hanging out and playing in the band. It was probably the best idea to stop what I was doing.

I wasn't getting known for what I wanted to be known for. I was unknown for, wow, your drummer is a murderer. Marina Calabro's niece, Donna, is glad Morel came forward, but thinks the cops shouldn't have needed to be told that this was no accident. I know it was murder. I had no doubt in my mind. None. She had visited her aunt in the weeks before she died.

and says it was obvious Marina's world was in disarray. The house was not like Aunt Marina keeps it. It wasn't normal, it was wrong. He was just wrong. Anthony, the nephew she doted on, had become surly and resentful. I saw the way Anthony was treating Aunt Marina. Namely how?

Very disrespectful. Give me an example. Swearing at her, yelling at her. His ever-present friends, Jason and Tom, a constant problem. The atmosphere was evil. These boys were wild. They weren't caring. I did not like these boys at all.

Marina was so frightened, Donna says, she'd begun hiding her money. She would put it in an hour on stalking and wrap it around her waist. when she'd go to bed at night. I told Aunt Marina that she was in great danger. And she said that if anything happened to her, she'd call 911. And I told her you'll never get the chance. I just knew.

As soon as she heard about Marina's death, Donna says she was suspicious. And she went to the police with her concerns. They showed little interest. I think that police should be held accountable for doing such a terrible, non-caring investigation. They took it as an old woman who fell down the stairs and let it go. Assistant DA Susan Corkran concedes investigators' mistakes early on made it much harder to build a case. You didn't look at this and say, oh, you know, this will be a snap.

No, I did not. I knew that I had to overcome a lot of issues when I first received the case. What was the biggest one that you think you had to overcome? The state police had declared an accident. The Quincy Police had declared an accident and the medical examiner had declared it an accident. So even though detectives on the scene did notice scratches on Tom Lally's face, they didn't bother taking pictures. Instead, simply accepting the boy's explanation.

They said that the night before they had an argument because Anthony had been drinking or something to that effect. And Tom tried to grab the bottle from him and Anthony scratched Tom's face. Ten months later, by the time the police knew they were investigating a murder, not only had the scratches healed, Marina Calabro's house had been sold. The kitchen remodeled. What would the crime scene folks have done that they couldn't do, by the time they got into the house.

They tried to do testing for blood. It was too long. It was too late for them to do any type of testing. So although Corcoran had Jim Morel's secretly recorded tapes, she initially had little else. They were very good at covering their tracks. They tried to conceal the crime. When she was found at the foot of the steers,

they covered everything up. They cleaned everything up at the crime scene on that night. When police drained the pond, pond where Jason Weir had taken Jim Morel, they did find the frying pan, believed to be the murder weapon, and it was right there where Weir said it would be. Also found remnants of newspapers from the week of the crime and a yellow tea kettle. This was a very, very heinous crime. It was committed with a frying pan and with a tea kettle. Not so fast, says Jason Weir's attorney, McCormick.

I'm sure if we go to any pond in the general area, we're going to find some debris. He thinks that after 10 months in the pond, frying pans and tea kettles are not evidence. There's no fingerprints to tie anyone to this. The state McCormick charges has been all too eager to jump to wild conclusions, to make up for evidence it doesn't have. He points to a bizarre discovery at the crime lab, which at one point, said it actually had found DNA on Marina Calabro's body in seminal fluid. The question obviously is who's is it? How did it get there?

The lab took DNA samples from the three suspects and even from Jim Morel. It didn't match Morrell, and to make matters worse for the state, it didn't match the three suspects either. It really calls into question the entire version of the death of Marina. a Claibro as alleged by the Commonwealth. McCormick suggests Weir's damning admissions on tape are just typical adolescent swagger. Is this just two 16, 17 year old boys talking big,

who caught the biggest fish, who has the prettiest girlfriend, who has the fastest car? Let me tell you something that will shock you and make you myself feel tough. I don't know. Lally's lawyer, Robert Griffin, says in his client's case, the alleged motive, greed, makes no sense. Thomas Lally had an annuity that was going to pay him money every five years.

He received his first payment in 2001. And Anthony Calabro's lawyer, Bob Lowney, says that when Anthony wanted money... He was getting anything he wanted from her. All he had to do was ask. So does Anthony explain this situation in terms of, hey, she just fell down the stairs? That's what we maintain. Not part of any criminal activity. Anthony's Aunt Donna would so like to believe that. I wish to God it was in Anthony. More than anything, I wished it wasn't Anthony. But it is.

As the state prepares to go to trial, its star witness, Jim Morel, is ready to face his former friends, in court. I'm confident that I can do this. I'm very confident. You're not nervous? I'm a little nervous. And Lally's lawyer says,

says his client, the first up, is terrified. What are the stakes here? He goes home or he goes to prison for the rest of his life with no possibility of parole. What's up, guys? I'm Candace Dillard Bassett, and you may know me from my time on the Real Housewives of Potomac or as a part of the latest cast of the traders. And I'm Michael Arsino, author of The New York Times bestseller, I Can't Date Jesus. On our podcast, Undomesticated, we don't just say the quiet parents out loud. We're putting it all on the kitchen table and inviting you into the chaos.

If you're ready for bold takes, real talk, and a little fun, come join us. Listen to and follow Undomesticated and Odyssey Podcast, available wherever you get your podcast. March 3rd, 2006, and Tom Lally has changed dramatically in the more than four years since Marina Calabro died. He's the first of the three defendants to stand trial for her murder. He's nervous. He's got to get up there. He's going to tell the story, and this is the fight of his life.

His uncle has been by his side throughout. For the last four years, I just did everything I could do to keep Tom going and just really try to be positive. It was the perfect crime. That's what he said. But in prosecutor Susan Corcoran's eyes, this defendant strikes her on the head with the frying pan. Tom Lally is a cold-blooded murderer, period. Whacking her as she was screaming for her life. She makes sure the jury knows that this slight young man before them bears little resemblance to the swaggering tough he once was.

He was 220 pounds and was bald. He may have looked tough, but Tom's never been a tough kid. I would say the exact opposite. Lally describes his nephew as a caring boy, close to his mother, saddled with learning disabilities and struggling with a mild case of Tourette's syndrome. The only place I've been able to get my ins is from top, and I do believe him. He thinks that in the end, the state can't prove its case. And for sure, the state has problems. Thank you, Your Honor. As defense attorney Robert Griffin points out,

not only is there the medical examiner's initial ruling... You had ruled that the cause of death was an accident, correct? That's right. But the DNA, supposedly found on Marina's body, turned out to be one big embarrassment for the state. Further testing showed it wasn't from seminal fluid after all. And worse, it came from the lab worker who did the testing. You contaminated that sample during the course of your handling it, correct?

That's correct. Still, as much as the defense discredits the early investigation, this is a story of loyalty and betrayal, and the prosecution's case relies. less on forensic evidence than on the testimony of Lally's friends or former friends. Do you know the defendant? Yes, sir. I do.

Yes, ma'am. And they can't seem to bear their souls fast enough, offering chilling testimony about how Anthony and Tom used to talk about Marina Collabro. Tom was saying that he could have her neck broken without leaving any bruises. Wouldn't it be funny if we pushed her down the stairs and got her money? The one friend not called to testify, Jim Morell, whose undercover whose undercover taping unraveled the entire plot. Look, all right.

Instead, the state produces a new key witness. Please call you next one. Someone who was actually there. You saw him this way to testimony about you into this court. Jason Weir, betrayed by you. Betrayed by Jim Morel back in 2002, he is now in turn betraying his friends. In exchange for his testimony, he agreed to plead to manslaughter and take a 10-year sentence. He was always consistent about what happened in that apartment that day and always consistent about what Tom Lally did.

Jason tells the jurors that he heard Tom and Anthony plot the crime. Anthony would say something along the lines of I should take a contract out on her and Tom Lyle would say it could be arranged or You know what if something was to happen to her and you just didn't know about it He claims he never took it seriously Until that moment he and Marina stood in the kitchen and Tom walked in with a frying pan She says what are you doing with my pan? He was just like I'm doing this and as I looked up to see this this frying pan came literally right across my face. I could feel the breeze off of it What was the next thing you remember happening, Mr. Weir?

He hit her in the head with a pan. Marina kept struggling, Jason says, and then Tom grabbed a tea kettle. He picked it up and he was hitting her off the head with it. What was she doing at that point? She was terrified. She was screaming. She was yelling, calling for Anthony, calling for anything. Did you go in to help Marina Calabro at any point?

No, I didn't. And why not? I didn't. I couldn't react. I was too afraid. When it was over, Jason says, and Anthony had come inside, Lally kept his cool. It said, I put her head at the bottom of the stairs so that way it'll look like it's all legitimate. But defense attorney Griffin says Jason Weir would say anything to save himself.

And he reminds jurors how cocky Jason was when he confided to Jim Morel. You told Mr. Morel that you played it smart, didn't you? Yes, I did. You told James Morel, you knew you would get him. away with it, didn't you? Yes, I did. But whatever the jury may think of Jason's callous words, the state finally has some forensic evidence to bolster his story.

In 2005, Prosecutor Corcoran had Marina's fingernail clippings tested by another lab, and it found DNA. DNA, which, while not conclusive, is a partial match to Tom Lally. The DNA underneath the fingernails could be from Tom Lally. Yes. Is that right? Yes. And it excluded the other two defendants. It could not be from either Jason Ware or Anthony Calabro. So it's very consistent. We had the fingernail scrapings

and the fingernail clippings from Marina Calabro and the scratch marks on Thomas Lally's face. Lally's uncle believes the DNA got under Marina's nails when his nephew tried to help her. But he knows things look bad. Just got to keep him thinking strong and thinking positive and get him back in the game. Defense calls Thomas Lassie.

seemingly backed into a corner. Tom Lally takes the stand in his own defense. Mr. Lally, did you harm Marina Collabro in any way? No, I had nothing to do with Marina's death. Jason Ware killed her. Just switch the rolls, Lally says. Jason was the killer. It was Jason who took him by surprise that horrible day.

Jason Ware came out of the dining room with a sock on his right hand. He was holding a frying pan. and he struck Marina Collabro on the head with it. What if anything did you do when you saw Jason Ware strike Ms. Calabro? I tried to help her by getting in between them, but she had fallen to the floor unconscious. During the course of that struggle, what if anything happened to you? He scratched my face.

It was Jason, Tom says, who staged the scene. He dragged her body to the stairs and placed her at the bottom of the landing. And then he says, Jason bullied both him and Anthony into lying to the police. What was the reason you were afraid of him, Mr. Lally? I saw him kill Marina Collaboral, and he was threatening me and my family. Prosecutor Corcoran doesn't hide her disgust at this story.

I'm asking you, when Jason Weir came into that kitchen, which is a small kitchen, from that living room, you couldn't see that frying pan in his hand? You wanted yours to believe that? Yes, ma'am. When he raised his hand is when I saw it. That was when I took notice of it. Was she yelling at that time?

No. She was just standing there. She wasn't yelling? She may have made a sound. I did not hear her yell, though, no. She was struck three times with a cast iron frying pan, and you did not hear Marina Calabro yelling, Mr. Lally? It was in very rapid succession, and it was not a cast iron frying fan.

Please answer my question. Did you hear her scream, Mr. Lally? That's what I'm asking you. No, I did not, ma'am. You were very tough on him. I think I had to be. I think I had to be tough. on him. I firmly believe that he was the one who committed this crime.

No further questions. Thank you, Mr. Lyle. You may step down. I was proud of him. He's been waiting four years to tell his side of the story. It was important for him to be heard, but it was also difficult. With the case in the jury's hands, Tom's mother and uncle can only wait. My biggest fairer is that Tom doesn't make it home. And after only four hours... On the charge of murders, defending guilty or not guilty. guilty. Guilty of murder in the first degree. Tom Lally is found guilty of first

degree murder. Really knocked me for a loop. The sentence, life without parole. I truly prayed every night and every day for the last four years for something else and the Rari motion just came out. The fate of Anthony Calabro, alleged mastermind, is yet to be decided. I've got a case where I've got a client who was not in the room. And that means his lawyer says that despite the Lally verdict, he still could win his case. There's a lot of different ways this could have to went down that my client didn't have to necessarily know about. I think Anthony was the smartest of the three of them.

She was an extraordinary woman. You miss her? Oh yeah, very much so. Very much so. As hard as Donna Strassel finds it to accept the loss of her auntie, Aunt Marina. It just never had happened. It's even harder to accept that her own nephew, Anthony, was behind the murder.

I love him. He's my nephew, but he needs to be held accountable, and he needs to take responsibility for this. What a life, please. Marina Calabro adored her great-nephew, Anthony Calabro. But Anthony betrayed his great-a-ants loves, as prosecutor Susan Corcoran, and with appalled. with appalling callousness. She put up a fight.

It took a while for this woman to die, and she was screaming for her great nephew to come in and help her. By the time Anthony Calabro finally has his day in court, four years have passed since Marina's death. This Mr. Calabro, which to speak. Unlike his friends, Anthony never gave a statement to police. He now, tearfully, breaks his three and a half year silence.

I'm disgusted with myself. I'm disgusted with my actions. I don't even think there are any words in the English language that can explain how sorry I am for everything that I've done. Having seen his friend Tom Lally convicted and hit with life without parole, Anthony is now no longer proclaiming his innocence. It's my sincerest wish that I could go back in time and undo the events of that day. I only hope that someday I might be able to be forgiven for all that I've done.

You saw me swear to make true answers to such questions as... His confession comes only after the state's decision to offer him a deal, plead guilty to a lesser charge. Did you commit the crime of murder in the second degree? Yes, Your Honor. Thank you, sir. I'll accept your plea of guilty. Prosecutor Susan Corcoran reminds the court one last time just what he did in every heart. in every horrific detail.

When the defendant entered the apartment, he saw that the victim was dead, shrugged and left. Anthony no longer denies any of it. And as he's led away, his aunt Donna almost seems relieved. When he spoke today, his actions, his words, he was my nephew with sincerity and caring. You said you most wanted him to accept responsibility. And he did that.

Thank you. The agreed on sentence, life in prison, with the possibility of parole in 12 years, a vastly different faith than that of his former friends. Star witness Jason Weir could be out of prison in fewer than seven years, but Tom Lally will spend the rest of his life there, period. No possibility of parole. Three people who all equally shared responsibility in the crime, I'll get different punishments.

That just doesn't seem fair to me. But all Tom's distraught uncle can do is to promise to be there for his nephew. It may not be the life that we would want anybody to have, but there's a life, and there's a relationship, and there's love, and you keep that going. I believe they all had involvement. They never would have done a job like this unless everybody knew about it, everybody was willing to take part in it. And then there is the fourth friend, Jim Morel, who at 19 put truth over loyalty and went to the police.

This case would be nowhere without Jim Merrell. These three kids could have gone on the rest of their lives and gotten away with this murder. And yet even today, his decision makes Morel uneasy. Their lives are kind of ruined now, you know. They destroyed one life. And I kind of feel like even now after everything, I still feel like I kind of destroyed three. Jim Morel is still writing music, now a little less dark. He has a job and a hopeful future.

I'm moving up in my own car, my own apartment. It seems like I'm kind of taking care of myself. And if he were to find himself today in that same impossible situation? It's not the easiest thing in the world, but I had no choice. Jim Merle says he would do it again. In 2009, Jason Weir was released from prison. Anthony Calabra was granted parole in January 2022. Thomas Lally remains behind bars.