48 Hours - The Journals of Maria Muñoz

Episode Date: December 17, 2023

A young wife and mother dies unexpectedly with a strange mix of drugs in her system. Investigators turn to her journals for answers. "48 Hours" correspondent Erin Moriarty reports.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to this podcast ad-free right now. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app today. Even if you love the thrill of true crime stories as much as I do, there are times when you want to mix it up. And that's where Audible comes in, with all the genres you love and new ones to discover. Explore thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. thousands of audiobooks, podcasts, and originals, with more added all the time. Listening to Audible can lead to positive change in your mood, your habits,

and even your overall well-being. And you can enjoy Audible anytime, while doing household chores, exercising, commuting, you name it. There's more to imagine when you listen. Sign up for a free 30-day Audible trial and your first audiobook is free. Visit audible.ca. In 2014, Laura Heavlin was in her home in Tennessee when she received a call from California. Her daughter, Erin Corwin, was missing. The young wife of a Marine had moved to the California desert

to a remote base near Joshua Tree National Park. They have to alert the military. And when they do, the NCIS gets involved. From CBS Studios and CBS News, this is 48 Hours NCIS. Listen to 48 Hours NCIS ad-free starting October 29th on Amazon Music. Larry Nylon, what's the address of emergency? Hello, I'm on my way to emergency. She's not breathing. She may have taken some pills.

Okay, what is your address? She's not breathing. She may have taken some pills. Okay, what is your address? When we get the alert tone, they say it's an overdose. They're saying that he's performing CPR. Is somebody coming? He's on his third, fourth, fifth cycle.

Two, three, four, five. And that's when I get to the house. I'm Officer Gregorio de la Cruz. I was the first officer on the scene. Hello? What's going on? Metal subject shows up at the door, and he just turns around and darts into the residence.

I can see him heading up the stairs. I just see his shadow from the light that's on. So I followed him. What's going on? He's helping giving CPR. He's wearing scrubs so I believe he's a higher level of care than I can provide. And I ask him, do you want me to help? Do I help you? And he right away relinquishes giving CPR. What'd she take? I think clonazepam. She's been pretty depressed lately. I don't see any drugs. Usually when somebody overdoses on drugs, the pills are nearby, the needles nearby, the syringe, something's nearby. And nothing was. I'm probably at the scene within the next 30 to 45 minutes.

I'm Sergeant Luis Mata, Jr. I was the lead detective in the case. Then I start trying to get information from him. And I notice him not answering fully. And when I asked him, well, what's going on, Joel? He goes, well, I live a very private life, and those questions are something that I don't want coming out. Maria had been seeking help through the church,

through a pastor. Wasn't she also being treated for severe depression and anxiety? She had been getting some medical attention as well. But this case was unique because she was also expressing her thoughts, her feelings, her emotions in a diary. My fears are losing my family, losing my husband, damaging my kids, making the wrong choice. As the DA, my job was putting the right team together to work this case. She described that she was going through a tough time but that she loved those kids and she

couldn't wait to do more in the future. I want to be a good mom, a mom that is present, engaged, and involved with my kids. How important, how crucial were those journals? Very. She wasn't a drug abuser. She loved those kids. She would never leave them behind. There's no way. I'm Erin Moriarty of 48 Hours, and of all the cases I've covered,

this is the one that troubles me most. A bizarre and maddening tale involving an eyewitness account that doesn't quite make sense. A sister testifying against a brother. A lack of physical evidence. Crosley Green has lived more than half his life behind bars for a crime he says he didn't commit. Listen to Murder in the Orange Grove, the troubled case against Crosley Green, early and ad-free on Wondery Plus and the Wondery app. Hot shot Australian attorney Nicola Gaba was born into legal royalty. Her specialty? Representing some of the city's most infamous gangland criminals. However, while Nicola held

the underworld's darkest secrets, the most dangerous secret was her own. She's going to all the major groups within Melbourne's underworld, and she's informing on them all. I'm Marsha Clark, host of the new podcast, Informants Lawyer X. In my long career in criminal justice as a prosecutor and defense attorney, I've seen some crazy cases, and this one belongs right at the top of the list. She was addicted to the game she had created. She just didn't know how to stop. Now, through dramatic interviews and access,

I'll reveal the truth behind one of the world's most shocking legal scandals. Listen to Informant's Lawyer X exclusively on Wondery+. Join Wondery in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. And listen to more Exhibit C true crime shows early and ad-free right now. In the early morning hours of September 22, 2020, when Laredo police officer Gregorio de la Cruz walked inside the home on Canyon Oak Drive, his body camera was recording the emergency

unfolding in front of him. What's going on? At the top of the stairs near the main bedroom, Joao Peio, dressed in teal surgical scrubs, was performing CPR on his wife, Maria Munoz. De La Cruz soon took over. We sometimes zoom into the body cam footage to avoid graphic material.

What kind of shape was she in when you started giving her CPR? She was warm. She was still warm to the touch. While De La Cruz desperately tried to revive Maria, he asked her husband about the drugs. Hoala told the 911 operator his wife may have taken some pills. He stands up, he goes to the restroom, he opens a medicine cabinet. I can tell all this because I hear it. I'm not really sure. Upon his return, he hands De La Cruz a pill container. Clonazepam is a drug that is often used to treat anxiety.

It had been prescribed to Joel, not to his wife Maria. De La Cruz quickly tossed the pill container aside to continue CPR. Joel told De La Cruz that Maria had been struggling lately. She's been super depressed. Joel told the officer

that the couple's two young sons were still in separate bedrooms nearby. Seemingly unaware of what was happening to their mother Maria. She would like to take her children to the park. She read to them before they went to bed. Just a really dedicated mother. Yasmin Martinez says her friend Maria adored her boys, five-year-old Alejandro and Valentino, who was turning two. I am happy. I am happy. Maria enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom. Take 1,000. She was learning to play the piano and planning to resume her career. I asked her if she had gone to school, and she said yes, that she was a nurse in Puerto Rico.

And she's like, I'm actually studying to take my test so I could work here. It was in Puerto Rico where Maria met Joel Peyote. He was 11 years older and a nursing student. A few years after they married, the couple moved to Laredo, Texas. Hawal had landed a lucrative job as a nurse anesthetist, known in the medical profession as a CRNA. A nurse anesthetist or a CRNA certified registered nurse anesthetist and a physician anesthesiologist, use the same medication, same techniques to provide anesthesia for people of all ages. Tina Dorres also was CRNA, worked with Hawal Payot at Doctors Hospital in Laredo. Did he seem dedicated to his work?

Yes, very much so. He always wanted to be better. When I first met him, he was very family-oriented, a hard worker, smart guy. He would always talk about Maria and Alejandro and showing pictures of his son and just talking about

family life in general. And now at the Peyote home, paramedics and police were struggling to save the life of the young wife and mother. When more help arrived, De La Cruz sent Hawal Peyote downstairs to the kitchen. And that's when De La Cruz realized that the pill container he had tossed to the side earlier Hey, there were some drugs here. was now missing he had

a prescription drug where is it i was like he has to have him so that's when i asked hey does he have pills he comes up to the first landing of the stairs and he tosses them to me all right so he had taken him now i'm thinking now you're trying to hide something. At 3.58, less than three hours after Joel Peota called 911, his wife, 31-year-old Maria Munoz, was declared dead inside their home. What's going on? What happened? Police began asking Joel what had happened to his wife. We had sex. We took a shower. Then I thought she was, like, knocked out.

And then I go back upstairs, and then she just... By now, things just didn't feel right to the investigators. And there was something about Joel's appearance that seemed suspicious. He was really sweaty. I'm wearing a vest. I'm wearing a gun, I'm wearing almost 20 pounds of gear, right? And I'm not sweating as bad as he is.

So what went through your mind when you saw how sweaty he was? He's using drugs. He may be under the influence of drugs. You want to see a fire truck? Come on, let's go outside. The couple's children, now in the care of law enforcement, were escorted outside. My name is Alejandro.

Authorities immediately launched a death investigation. When I get there, I meet with Officer De La Cruz. He runs the information by me. Lead investigator Sergeant Luis Mata didn't know if Maria had died by suicide, an accidental overdose, or if her husband was somehow involved. Mata knew he needed to search the house,

but to do it, he would have to get Joel Payot's permission. And he said, well, I don't want you going through my stuff because I'm a very private man. Then I said, look, Joel, I'm not going to force you to. This is your right. But I'm going to have to go and get with my DA and apply for a search warrant. Joel eventually gave consent for the search. Still, Mata had a lot of questions. To get some answers, he directed authorities to put Joel in a police cruiser to take him to the station.

Could you see him before you went in? I could see him through my camera. Everything there is recorded. He's hitting walls. He's moving furniture. He's hitting walls. He's moving furniture. It was scaring some of the people down the hall in the dispatch room. So that's how loud it was. Around 4 a.m., Mata begins his interview with Joel Peyote, who claims he had given Maria that container of clonazepam prescribed to him.

He couldn't remember the minorest things. I don't know how many times I asked him, play back to me the minute you got there. What did you do? And he, well, what did I do? What did I do? What did I do? Well, you know what?

If you remember the truth, you don't have to think about it. Have you ever wondered who created that bottle of sriracha that's living in your fridge? To be continued... origin stories of the products you're obsessed with and the bold risk takers who brought them to life. Like did you know that Super Mario, the best-selling video game character of all time, only exists because Nintendo couldn't get the rights to Popeye? Or Jack, that the idea for the McDonald's Happy Meal first came from a mom in Guatemala? From Pez dispensers to Levi's 501s to Air Jordans, discover the surprising stories of the most viral products. Plus, we guarantee that after listening, you're going to dominate your next dinner party. So follow The Best Idea Yet on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Best Idea Yet early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus.

It's just the best idea yet. It's just the best idea yet. In the Pacific Ocean, halfway between Peru and New Zealand, lies a tiny volcanic island. It's a little-known British territory called Pitcairn, and it harboured a deep, dark scandal. There wouldn't be a girl on Pitcairn once they reach the age of 10 that would still a virgin. It just happens to all of us.

I'm journalist Luke Jones and for almost two years I've been investigating a shocking story that has left deep scars on generations of women and girls from Pitcairn. When there's nobody watching, nobody going to report it, people will get away with what they can get away with.

In the Pitcairn Trials, I'll be uncovering a story of abuse and the fight for justice that has brought a unique, lonely Pacific island to the brink of extinction. Listen to the Pitcairn Trials exclusively on Wondery+. Join Wondery in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. What was the time period between the time you got out of the shower to when you noticed, hey, she's not really responding anymore? 10 minutes, 100% sure. The sudden death of a healthy 31-year-old woman like Maria Munoz

didn't make sense to Sergeant Luis Mata, and neither did her husband, Joel Peyote's explanation. His initial statement was that he went in and took a shower. He thought she was asleep, and then 10 minutes later, he realizes that she's unresponsive. What's going on? How is her unresponsive on the bed? When a common person showers, what's

going to be in the bathroom? Steam, condensation, the smell of soap or shampoo. That master bedroom shower, which is the one that he alleged to use, was as dry as a desert. Investigators had also discovered a syringe wrapper on the floor. Hey, there's a needle right here. was as dry as a desert. Investigators had also discovered a syringe wrapper on the floor. Hey, there's a needle right here.

And a needle catheter on the stairs. Syringes and IV equipment in a medical bag were found inside the home. Why would there be syringes in the house? So, like, I don't know. Then, Hawal makes a hand gesture and taps his bicep. With Hoel peyote at the police station, Maria's close friend, Angela Montoya, and her husband, Luis Ayala, rushed over to the house to take care of the kids. to the house to take care of the kids.

Luis, a co-worker of Joao, says he had begun to see changes in Joao's physique and personality two years before Maria's death. He lost a lot of weight and then started gaining muscles. Did you suspect that maybe he was taking steroids? Maybe, but maybe he was

changing, like, more friendly with girls. Flirting more. Yeah. The family man who had once bragged to friends and colleagues about his wife and kids began changing his social media posts, too. He deleted the pictures of Maria, or he just started posting everything by himself, not with his kids. Hawal, in demand as a nurse anesthetist, was making a lot of money. And according to Angela, he enjoyed showing off his wealth. He has this new sporty car. I bought Maria that one and I bought myself this one, bragging about it.

But friends say the changes they saw in Hawal went much deeper. In 2018, around the same time Maria gave birth to the couple's second son, Hoau began pursuing a woman named Janet Arredondo, a surgical nurse he met at work. Joel took Janet to like a vacation spree in Europe. I don't recall which countries were that he took her? Well, there was one trip, there was Spain, and then the next trip was France and Greece. There you go. There you go. So Maria found out about that while he was there with Janet. According to Angela, Maria confirmed her suspicion about her husband's infidelity when she found a plane ticket for one of his European trips. When her disappointment turned into deep depression, she was prescribed

medication. But perhaps the best medicine for Maria turned out to be her daily journals, discovered in her home by investigators. I don't want to be sad anymore. I don't want my heart to hurt. I don't want my mind to be in torture. Yet at times, she seemed hopeful, believing her faith could mend the couple's 10-year marriage. Lord, this is a lot for me. All I really want to do is see change in him. And it seemed to be working. Just months after her husband had taken his mistress on those European vacations, Joao treated Maria to a lavish getaway in Las Vegas. And she showed me a couple of Louis Vuitton he purchased for her.

But what seemed like a second chance for her marriage didn't last. Joao could never quite leave Janet. How long have you been with Jeanette? About two years. Howell could never quite leave Janet. In fact, Howell told Sergeant Mata that he no longer lived with his family and that he had moved in with Janet Arredondo five months before Maria's death. Mata wondered how much the other woman knew and asked her to come to the police station to talk. What is your relationship with him? I wouldn't have called you at 6.30 in the morning if it was just for being nosy. It's not that I'm trying to be nosy, but I'll get to where I'm going.

He's my boyfriend. Mata continued pressing Janet about Joao and then told her about Maria. The reason that I'm here is because last night, Joao's wife passed away. There doesn't appear to be right now any type of foul play. We're still pending an autopsy. So let's get with... How did you and Joelle even start dating? I'm sorry, um...

I understand. Take your time. I know it's all kind of thrown at you, so... You know, I told you at the very beginning I'm going to be honest with you, so I am. Our main thing now is obviously what happened.

I'm sorry, what was your question? How long have you and her wife been dating? Almost two years now. Okay. Did Maria, his wife, did she do drugs? Not that I'm aware of. He just told me that she was very depressed. Okay. When Sergeant Mata mentioned Maria may have overdosed, Janet seemed surprised. Janet, is when we tell her family, they're going to think that either Jawel killed her or that you had something to do with it. That's why we have to rule you out.

Okay? Has Jawel ever confided in you that he wanted to do something to his wife? No. Jawel had told police that Maria may have overdosed on the drug clonazepam. But when the autopsy was conducted, eight hours after Maria was declared dead, the medical examiner found no pill residue in her stomach. And there was something on Maria's body at the scene that puzzled both the medical examiner and investigators.

A tiny mark on Maria's right arm. It was a little prick, kind of like whenever the common person draws blood or has their blood checked when they go to the doctor. One little dot. That's it. On her right elbow crease. No other signs of drug use or anything like that. The autopsy report states that Maria died from a mixed drug intoxication. While the medical examiner couldn't say how the drugs got into her system, she did rule out suicide after talking to Maria's friends and reading her journal. On the day before she died, Maria wrote, What is it that I want? Move forward.

So could Maria's death have been an accidental overdose? Or was it murder? When Dr. John Hunsinger, an anesthesiologist, and Joel's former boss heard the autopsy results, he immediately became suspicious. And I called Detective Mata, and I told him my concerns. He urged Sergeant Mata to order a detailed toxicology screening to determine which drugs had killed Maria and how they got there.

Authorities would have to wait nearly four months to get the answers they needed. As a kid growing up in Chicago, there was one horror movie I was too scared to watch. It was called Candyman. The scary cult classic was set in the Chicago housing project. It was about this supernatural killer who'd attack his victims if they said his name five times into a bathroom mirror. Candyman. Candyman? Now we all know chanting a name won't make a killer magically appear. But did you know that the movie Candyman was partly inspired by an actual murder?

Candyman was partly inspired by an actual murder. I was struck by both how spooky it was, but also how outrageous it was. We're going to talk to the people who were there, and we're also going to uncover the larger story. My architect was shocked when he saw how this was created. Literally shocked. And we'll look at what the story tells us about injustice in America. If you really believed in tough on crime, then you wouldn't make it easy to crawl into medicine cabinets and kill our women. Listen to Candyman, the true story behind the bathroom mirror murder, early and ad-free on Wondery Plus and the Wondery app. On a Sunday afternoon at the First Baptist Church in Laredo... The victorious life is also a life of service.

All of our lives were impacted by the precious life of Maria. A large crowd of family and friends came to mourn Maria Munoz, including her estranged husband, Joel. Her funeral was really sad. Joel was there and he was crying. He seemed very upset, very sad. To Maria's friend, Yasmin Martinez, he seemed a little too upset, too sad. What made me feel angry was him near the casket crying over her, giving her kisses. Like, why now? You have made her suffer and cry so much, and you're doing this now? Joel Peyote's display of grief did nothing to deter the investigation into his wife's death. Sergeant Luis Mata and Officer Gregorio de la Cruz say the footage captured by the body cam on the morning Maria died shows something curious. Remember the pills in a container that Joel said his wife had taken?

De la Cruz tossed it aside when he was giving Maria CPR. He had a prescription drug. Where is it? At some point, it disappeared. Yeah, I see it. It's still here right now. And here's how it happened, they say. Hawal grabs the pill container

and puts it in his pocket. Reach it and put it in. He just Reach it and put it in. He just reached over and put it right back in the shirt. If that's really what she took, why would you want to hide that? They were also suspicious of that needle catheter. Hey, there's a needle right here. The kind used for IVs discovered at the scene.

Remember, Maria had a tiny mark on her right arm. Sergeant Matas shared his concerns with the Webb County District Attorney's Office. We have a 24-7 phone, and law enforcement can contact us with any questions. Chief Assistant DA Maricela Jacomen and District Attorney Isidro Alaniz knew the case would be tough to prove since even the medical examiner wasn't sure exactly how Maria died. The medical examiner is saying, I can't say for a fact this is homicide. I remember having this conversation with the medical examiner early on, and I remember her saying, look, I wasn't there and neither were you. All we know is that she has this combination of dangerous drugs in her bloodstream.

We don't know who gave them to her, if she had some in her system already, if she took some later on. Either accident or murder. Accident or murder. Investigators began to question Maria's friends and discovered that the Saturday before Maria died there was a confrontation at Janet's house when Maria saw Hoel's car there So that's when she stepped out of the car and then she rang the doorbell

According to Angela, Maria, seen on Janet's doorbell camera gave Hoel an ultimatum. You choose her or you choose me. And then he says, I choose Janet. Janet called the police, and when a responding officer arrived at her home, he called Maria, who had by then left with Joel. When Maria answered her cell phone, the officer's body cam recorded the sound of Hoau berating her in the background.

Hey, I'm talking to you right now. Head up the phone. I guess that's your boyfriend. According to Angela, Maria told her that Hoau became violent. And he got

so frustrated with everything that he punched the windshield. He broke it. He broke it. Yes, he broke it. On Sunday morning, Maria texted her husband about hiring a divorce lawyer, and he replied, we can do this with minimal lawyer intervention. It's too much money. Hoel then seems to have had a change of heart and sends Maria this email. I'm so sad. I'm hurting inside. I want to sit down with you to talk without arguing. A heart to heart.

They agreed to meet Monday night. Before Hawal arrived, Maria messaged her friend Yasmin Martinez to pray for her. I just ask if you can pray for me. Tonight, we're going to talk. And then I answered her. And I told her that I would pray for her. Maria's request for prayers that night would be her final message to Yasmin. She died early Tuesday morning.

Nearly four months after Maria's death, Sergeant Mata and Officer De La Cruz finally get the toxicology test results they had been waiting for. Zero clonazepam. Zero clonazepam, the drug who outclaimed Maria had taken. Instead, the toxicology report

revealed seven other drugs in Maria's system. So positive for morphine, Demerol, Versed, Propofol, Ketamine, Lidocaine, Narcan. Most of these medications are typically used during surgery, and one of them can only be administered with an IV. What was your reaction? He killed her. This guy killed his wife. Authorities got a warrant. Officer DeLaCruz, who had tried to save Maria's life,

returned to Joel's home. He knew why we were there. To make the arrest. By the time we knock on the door and we announce our presence... Just like the way you do in the movies, comes out, I'm here, I'm here, puts his hands behind his back, lets us cuff him, doesn't put up a fight. Hoel Peyote was taken to the police station and booked.

You can call my attorney. Oh, you can call him. Prosecutors believe he was the one who gave his wife the deadly mixture. But can they prove he wanted her to die? What do you think was the most suspicious aspect of Maria's death? See more evidence from the case at 48hours.com.

When Joel Peyote's former boss, anesthesiologist Dr. John Hunzinger, saw the list of drugs found in Maria Munoz, seven different medications. He was surprised by one drug in particular. I was very shocked to see propofol. Where would he get that propofol? You can't just go to the drugstore to get propofol. You have to get it from the hospital. While most of the drugs found in Maria's system could be consumed by mouth,

propofol is usually injected by someone else with an IV. One of the things about propofol, it relaxes you greatly, but it doesn't last very long. It makes you stop breathing if you have too much. I think most of us, when we hear about propofol, we think of Michael Jackson. Correct. Singer Michael Jackson. Correct.

Singer Michael Jackson's death in June 2009 was blamed in part on an accidental overdose of propofol. And after Maria Munoz's death, a highly elevated level of the drug was found in her system. Hers was the highest level I've seen. And what does that say to you? I believe this was death by propofol. With Howell Payotte now under arrest, authorities were convinced that Payotte's girlfriend, Janet Arredondo, knew more than what she shared in that first interview. So they got a search warrant for her home. Then they offered her a deal.

In exchange for more information, Janet would get immunity from prosecution. Janet agreed to a second police interview, and accompanied by attorneys, she now seemed ready to talk. Janet told police bring home any medical drugs? Yes. Janet told police that Peyote had often brought drugs to her home, some for his own recreational use, including ketamine, morphine, lidocaine, fentanyl, and more. Percent.

Okay. Propofol. Propofol? Janet's information about Propofol. Propofol? Janet's information about Propofol kicked the case into high gear. District Attorney Isidro Alaniz selected a team of attorneys led by Maricela Jackalman. I'm Karina Rios. My name is Anna Karen Garza. My name is Cristal Calderon.

We are Maria's team. All four prosecutors were convinced that Maria's husband had methodically planned her murder and that the devoted mother and wife had suffered in the months before her death. I've heard of emotional abuse. I've seen it. I've worked around it. But I never realized how prevalent it is, even in our lives, where you can relate to some of the things that Maria was experiencing. On the face of it, this is a couple having problems. He's having an affair. But to you, this is domestic violence. How? domestic violence. How? Well, I think it goes so much further than just being a spouse. You could see the power struggle that existed or the lack thereof. Assistant District Attorney Karina Rios.

Maria had no power in this relationship. And the evidence of that, prosecutors say, is found in Maria's own journals. Prosecutor Jackman read one of those entries. journals. Prosecutor Jackman read one of those entries. Life is so unfair. My husband, the man I love so much, is causing me so much pain. I want to know what is it that you want me to do? Maria also left evidence on her cell phone that she secretly recorded approximately four months before her death. What are the expectations you have on this marriage? She gave us this very powerful video. You walk out that door, we're getting a divorce. All right, fine.

F***. You got it. She was having a discussion with him, and that was so painful to watch. But prosecutors would need much more than that video and Maria's journal entries. How do they believe that Hawal Payot dosed his wife with all those drugs? That was the million-dollar question. We kept saying, how did he get her to submit to this?

How did he get her to submit to this? During Janet Arradondo's second police interview, she said Peyote had told her about the night Maria died. He had gone there, he said, to have that heart-to-heart talk and then injected her not to kill her, Peyote said, but to calm her down. Why did he tell you that he injected her? Because she was erratic? Right.

He wanted to just calm her down. So he did it with medication. But investigators believe the sedatives were part of Peyote's plan to kill Maria, that before Peyote put an IV needle in Maria's arm, he could have slipped several sedative drugs into her favorite drink, coffee. Ketamine, Versed, morphine, and Demerol. Those four could have been put in her coffee. She then passes out.

After that, they say, Peyote injected Maria with a deadly dose of propofol. Then Chief Assistant District Attorney Ana Karen Garza Gutierrez says that Peyote deliberately waited to call for help. I believe he waited until she was dead to call 911 to make sure that no one can bring her back. Did you play any role in Maria's death at all? You?

Janet said Peyote did admit to her that he got rid of some of the medical equipment he used to inject Maria before first responders arrived. He just told me he got rid of them. Peyote was out on bail, so prosecutors had him re-arrested, and along with murder, he was charged with tampering with evidence. Again, he made bail and would wear an ankle monitor. In March 2023, two and a half years after Maria Munoz's death, her husband went on trial for her murder. 48 Hours made several interview requests to Joel Peyote's defense team, but never received a response. Joel Peyote declined our request for an interview.

The evidence will show that Joel Peyote, the motive, he had the intent, and he had the means to kill Maria. Prosecutors presented 15 witnesses to prove to a jury that Peyote had carefully and intentionally selected the drugs to kill Maria. Their star witness, Janet Arredondo, who told the jury what she had shared with police. Did Mr. Payot indicate to you that he dumped or discarded the iodine catheter and the vials? Yes. When the defense case begins, Joel Payot's lawyers admit their client injected his wife.

But they say he wasn't trying to kill her. He was trying to save her. Puapeot wearing a blue suit and a dark gray tie listened carefully as his defense team presented his case. Now, Maria died, and there's no question that Joel was there. Defense attorney Roberto Bali claims Maria was terribly depressed and had been drinking and abusing drugs for months. When Joel arrived, Maria was already on something. According to the defense, Joel Peo didn't intend to kill his wife.

And the proof, his attorneys say, is in that toxicology report. They admit Payot gave his wife medication to calm her down. And then when he found her unconscious, they say he gave her Narcan, a drug used to reverse an opioid overdose. Someone tried to bring her back to life and it wasn't the paramedics, Someone tried to bring her back to life, and it wasn't the paramedics, it wasn't the police, it was Joel. So he did not want her dead. This was a terrible accident. A terrible accident, the defense argues, that was caused by a combination of whatever Maria had taken and the medication Peyot used to inject her. How do you know that Narcan wasn't there because he tried to save her? That he went too far, realized he had gone too far? Narcan is not

a reversal agent for propofol. And propofol was what stopped her heart at the end. The defense never explained to the jury how the propofol got into Maria's system. But prosecutors say that the level of drugs discovered in Maria's body could not have been accidental. It was enough medication to survive two major surgeries. It was so much. And why do you think he gave her so much? To be sure. Why do you think he gave her so much? To be sure. While Peyote himself didn't testify, his emotional mother did.

Miriam Carrasquillo told prosecutors during cross-examination that Maria had talked about how sad she was about her marriage. You were aware that Cohen, Peyote who was being dragged, weren't you? Yes, she told. Who told you? I did. And did you encourage her to stay in the marriage? I told her that everybody have a limit, and she have a limit.

When she decided she don't want to be no more with him, I had my house open for her. But prosecutors insist, as sad as Maria may have been about her marriage, there's no evidence that she abused either drugs or alcohol. Evidence that she abused either drugs or alcohol. They believe Peyote's motive was money and that he murdered Maria because he didn't want to pay for a divorce and split his assets. After eight days of testimony, the jury got the case. It took them less than an hour to decide who out Peyote's fate. It took them less than an hour to decide how Alpayot's fate. Guilty of murdering his wife, Maria, and tampering with the evidence. Many members of the medical community attended the trial.

Payot's former colleague, Tina Dores. He's not dumb. I mean, he's a smart guy. So I don't know if he just got caught up with his God complex, that he thought he was smarter than everyone and that he was going to outsmart them. Just hours after the guilty verdict, Peyote was sentenced to life in prison, cuffed and escorted out of the courtroom. She loved him and she adored him. Maria's friend, Angela Montoya. She just loved him too much.

Prosecutors got justice for Maria, but it's a tragic ending for the family she loved and fought so hard to keep together. I think sometimes the worst injuries don't even leave a mark.

The injuries on your heart, on your mind, we could never see those on Maria, but she told us about them. She carried a lot of scars with her from this relationship. Maria's team say the most important witness at trial ended up being Maria herself, and that her journals showed those scars were healing. I want a life that's mine, different and unique. A life that's balanced with every emotion, but a happy, fulfilling life.

She was a wonderful soul. And she was a great mother. She was just an amazing person. And that energy, we felt it. Join me Tuesday for Postmortem from 48 Hours, where we'll dive even deeper into today's episode and answer your questions about the case. podcast, you can listen ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app. Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a quick survey at wondery.com slash survey.