48 Hours - The Suspicious Death of Christian Andreacchio

Episode Date: January 10, 2021

A man dies from a gunshot wound – his friends say they discovered him. Police rule out foul play, but his family says there are troubling clues. "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant reports.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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ConstantContact.ca My son Christian, Andrew Aikio, was a hard worker, loved life. He just always liked the water. He talked about either working offshore in the Gulf, then someone told him about the towboats and that's when he went that direction. He was on the verge of becoming the youngest towboat captain and probably had a long career running a boat up and down the river. They had a long career running a boat up and down the river. Loved to be the center of attention in the life of the party. Whether you were 80 years old or you were 15 years old, he was going to flirt with you. Always wanting to help somebody out.

Ultimately, his good-heartedness is what got him in trouble at the end. He had gone to a party across the lake, and I think he met her at the party. Willie Goodman was very polite, very, I mean, cute girl. When we first met her, she was quiet, you know, and Christian liked her, so that was good enough for us. Is there any doubt in your mind that Christian fell in love with your daughter? No, no doubt whatsoever. And did she feel the same for him? She did and she does to this day.

We were out to eat at a restaurant, had just sat down. My father called and said we had a tragedy. 911, where's your emergency? Ma'am, we've had a suicide. You had a suicide? Yes, ma'am. That was the toughest, toughest news I ever heard. It still hurts today.

Who is it, sir? Christian, is it out there? It still hurts today. Who is it, sir? Christian is out here. He's laying across the bathroom tub, and he's got blood everywhere. Did he take his own life? No, sir. Absolutely not. No, he would never do that. Okay, who's that in the background?

That's his girlfriend. What's her name? Whitley Goodman. Do you believe that your son was murdered? Oh, I 100% believe he's murdered. Mr. Andreacchio was shot in the right side of the head. There was very little, if any, investigation that took place on the scene on the day that it occurred. It was totally bungled because the investigators were called off.

Because they didn't do their job, we had to do their job for them. Sitting across from me today, do you know who killed your son, Christian? Yes. I was so confused whenever I started being blamed. I really was. We're going to keep on fighting. I do have a small army, but they're smart.

She did not kill him. As a prosecutor, I have never in my career seen anything like this case. I don't care to change anyone's mind. They let somebody get away with murder. Редактор субтитров А.Семкин I can't believe this is happening to our family. I think everybody was just kind of in shock. This is something, you know, that happens to other people. It doesn't happen to you. From their lakeside home just outside Meridian, Mississippi, Ray and Todd Andreacchio are haunted by the death of their 21-year-old son Christian in 2014.

A lot of days I look out there and expect to see him out there with the jet ski floating about, but every day you get caught with memories. Christian grew up here on Delwood Shore Lake, where he fell in love with the water and dreamed of becoming a towboat captain on the Mississippi River. He was on his way to being a really good man. I think he would have made a good father, a good husband. It's tough to talk about this. Yeah.

Yeah. I miss him every day. Have either of you honestly been able to have any peace in your life during all of this since your son's death? No. No, we've kind of been at war since it started. And you're at war now? Yes, sir. This isn't over? No, it's not of been at war since it started. And you're at war now? Yes, sir. This isn't over?

No, it's not by a long shot. For now, there are two unanswered questions at the heart of this case. Why would a young man with so much to live for take his own life? Or perhaps more importantly, did someone take Christian's life from him? Your son's death, suicide or homicide? Homicide. It's definitely a homicide. But Lauderdale County District Attorney Cassie Coleman,

who took over the case in 2018, says the evidence points in another direction. Well, at this point, there has been further investigation by multiple agencies that have determined it to be a suicide. At issue are the events of February 26, 2014. I had talked to Christian that morning. He was on the boat. You know, everything was fine. you know everything was fine. Christian was a few days into what's called a hitch a 30-day work trip on the Mississippi River where he was a first mate on a towboat. Ray called him about getting tickets for a Rihanna concert. And he said well let me check the dates to see he said I gotta

go I'll call you back later love ya got off the phone. Just hours later, they were told that Christian was found dead in his apartment, which he shared with his girlfriend, Whitley Goodman. And I was like, no, I don't, I don't think so. Christian's at work. He's not even, he's not even in town. A Meridian police detective broke the horrible news to them in person. And he said, well, this is his driver's license. And when we saw his driver's license, it became a little bit more real. But suicide? Nothing made sense to Ray and Todd. He's never had any kind of mental problems, any kind of depression.

Professionally, at the age of 21, Christian's life couldn't have been better. And on the personal side, he adored Whitley, who had dropped out of high school and wanted to become a hair and makeup artist. They made each other happy. He was crazy about her. What is it, buddy? Christy Chatterton is Whitley's mother. She's very funny, very creative and adventurous. She's a young woman that Christian Andracchio fell in love with. She is. Whitley even moved in with the Andracchios, But after a few weeks, Ray says Whitley became jealous, defacing a picture of Christian and his ex-girlfriend. I figured that she stabbed the faces out and then she brought the picture to me.

What'd you think, Todd? I thought she was a nut. The Andreacchios asked Whitley to move out. And so, you know, his kind of attitude was, well, if she can't be here, then I can't be here. Christian and Whitley moved into this apartment, which Christian paid for. I felt that she was using him for money. He was providing her with a place to stay, with a car, clothes, makeup, whatever. Whitley's mom saw problems too,

especially when Christian was on the towboat. She would have to stay on the phone with him at night so he could keep up with where she was and what she was doing. You mean for like an hour after an hour? Like hours and hours and hours every night. I didn't know how unhealthy the relationship had become. But none of this seemed to add up to suicide for the Andreacchios.

So for him to take his life over somebody he'd been dating for six months, I don't think so, no. On the night of Christian's death, Ray needed answers. She called her brother, Chris Thompson, and asked that he drive over to the Meridian Police Department. That's where Christian's friend, Dylan Swearingen, who made that 911 call... What was your first name?

Dylan. Dylan. ...was being questioned, along with Whitley. And I told him to be sure that Whitley didn't have Christian's phone. At first, Whitley denied having it, but eventually turned it over to police. To me, that was a big red flag right off the bat. So she had lied initially about not knowing where Christian's phone was. Right. It's very suspicious because why would you do that? My personal opinion is that she did not want that phone to get in the hands of law enforcement

because there were a lot of sexually oriented photographs and messages in that phone. The Andreacchios were stunned to learn the investigation at the scene lasted only 45 minutes. And the job they did in this investigation, how would you describe it? Piss poor. piss poor. But that same investigation did turn up something that the Andreacchios hoped would be a game changer. Both Dylan and Whitley are checked for gunshot residue, GSR. What do they find?

Gunshot residue. On both their hands? On both hands.? Both hands. And what does that suggest to you? They were in a room when the gun was fired. 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 in the pacific ocean halfway between peru and new zealand lies a tiny volcanic island it's a little known british territory called pit can and it harbored 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 Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Nobody wants to think that their child was at a point in their life where they took their own life.

I mean, that's just human nature. But we had someone in the community who had killed himself, and that really bothered Christian. And he several times told me, you know, Mom, if anybody ever says I killed myself, you come looking, because I wouldn't do that. For Christian's family, that horrible night in 2014 started a search for answers that continues to this day. We took the time to have his funeral and then the very next week we started going to the police department. From the beginning, the Andreacchios had questions about that 911 call placed by Christian's friend, Dylan Swearingen, around 4.45 p.m. 911, where's your emergency? They wonder, is this a genuine call or an elaborate act?

Listen closely. Who is it, sir? Christian Andreakios. Okay, just try not to touch anything, okay? That's Whitley wailing in the background. Whitley, Whitley. Is she up with him? Come down here. They don't want you to touch anything. Come on. Come here, Whitley. It just sounds fake to me. Please get somebody up there. I think he shot himself. He's already put it out there in people's mind that it's a suicide.

So, you know, now that's how it's going to be looked at. Did your son Dylan shoot Christian? Absolutely not. Pam Swearengen is Dylan's mother. On a very bad day, my son lost his best friend. Dylan and Whitley declined to grant us an interview, but their mothers agreed to speak for the first time to 48 Hours. While they wouldn't discuss specifics of the case, they're adamant their children did not commit any crime. It was just so shocking and

you know what she saw like she can never unsee it. I just want them to know that she did not kill him. That night, Christy rushed down to the police station where Whitley had just been questioned. I just hugged her and comforted her. Was she in tears? She was hysterical. Christian's death, suicide or homicide? 100% it's suicide. Investigators found Christian's body in the upstairs bathroom, leaning face down over

a blood-filled tub, with that gunshot wound to the right side of his head. Four months after Christian's death, Benny DuBose became Meridian's new chief of police and took on the case. A lot of this stuff didn't make sense. Starting with Christian's gun. When the gun was sent to the crime lab, they did not find any prints on the gun at all.

Christian's prints should have been on the gun. The gun was clean, wiped down. He says the bathroom was surprisingly clean, too. There should have been some blood splatter on this side and on this side. There was no blood splatter on this side and on this side. There was no blood splatter. Suggesting what? That, number one, the crime scene had been tampered with.

Probably, most likely, the blood splatter had been cleaned. Dubose says officers bungled the investigation. Taking pictures on the crime scene with a doggone cell phone. They all were issued cameras, and the pictures needless to say were terrible. District Attorney Cassie Coleman agrees. She inherited the case in 2018. Would you use the word incompetent? Yes. Without a doubt, it lacked competence. It lacked thoroughness.

Dylan and Whitley were not even photographed. There's been a lot of questions about, was there any blood on either one of them? The reality is, we don't know. The timeline that Dylan gives of the events don't really add up. Dylan told police Christian had called him around 2 early that morning, urgently asking for a ride home from St. Rose, Louisiana. Apparently, Christian had found out Whitley was cheating on him. He was coming home to kick her out of the apartment.

You believe he was going back to break up with her? Yes, sir. Dillon says he picked up Christian and they drove back to the apartment. Almost immediately, Christian and Whitley began arguing. When, Dillon says, Christian suddenly took out a gun and put it to his own head. According to the report, Christian threatened to shoot himself, telling Whitley to tell

him that she loved him. Dylan ended up saying that he took the weapon away from Christian, unloaded it, and hid it. But Whitley told detectives a different story. When Whitley is asked, has Christian ever appeared suicidal? She says, no, I don't think so. There were inconsistencies throughout her stories. According to police reports, Whitley told responders and friends that she discovered Christian's body. But she told a detective at the station that it was Dylan who found him. She claimed to be asleep on the sofa,

and a.45 caliber handgun is discharged, and she slept through it. Is that believable? No. No, not at all. You know your guns. How loud is a.45? That should have been heard two to three apartments over. And remember, gunshot residue was present on both Dillon's

and Whitley's hands. While police have not publicly commented about the GSR on Dillon's hands, Whitley told investigators she has an innocent explanation. Her response was, well, I'm going to have it on my hands because I was shooting guns the night before. She said she'd been target practicing with friends, a claim one of those friends said was true, but another said was false. But the Andreacchios are questioning everything, including something odd Dylan did earlier that day. What are we seeing in this picture? Dylan Swearengen at the credit union. Who has an account at that bank? Christian. These photos were taken at 12 29 p.m. around four hours before Dylan called 9-1-1. Dylan told investigators that Christian had given him his debit card with a startling request.

He says that Christian told him to withdraw all of his money, that he was giving him his money. But there was one little problem. Dylan didn't have Christian's PIN number, so he left empty-handed. Is that suspicious to you? Absolutely. He arrives back. He said that they watched a couple of movies.

Dillon said Christian had calmed down, so he gave him his gun back. He says Whitley settled in for a nap. Dillon says he left for another errand, and when he returned... 911, where's your emergency? Ma'am, we we had a suicide. Knowing what you know about this case, if I asked you was this suicide or homicide, where are you leaning? Neither.

How do you mean? I don't think that Mr. Andreacchio killed himself on purpose. And I don't think anybody else killed Mr. Andreacchio on purpose. And I don't think anybody else killed Mr. Andreacchio on purpose. DuBose believes Christian may have once again held his gun to his own head, this time upstairs in the bathroom. I believe that Quigley may have reached for the gun and the gun discharged. I don't think there was a motive. I think it was just an accident. The Andreacchios aren't buying any of it.

Could it have been an accident? I mean, anything's possible, but I don't believe it at all. In this situation, everything points to murder. And then they, whoever, staged it to look like a suicide. That night, the coroner ruled the death undetermined. After an autopsy, a forensic pathologist labeled it a suicide. And just like that, the Meridian Police Department closed the case. And so then we had to do this, start this investigation on our

own. So they began hiring their own private investigators, eventually forming a small army of supporters and experts, including a forensic pathologist named Dr. Jonathan Arden. It is my conclusion that the death of Christian Andreacchio was a homicide. Go inside the case on Facebook at 48 hours. We've just been really let down by the police and law enforcement. We had no idea what to do or where to start. Ray and Todd Andreacchio began their search for justice by hiring their own team of investigators, including this man. I've performed about 3,000 autopsies on my own. Former Washington, D.C. medical examiner Dr. Jonathan Arden, who examined the case file.

From the beginning, my reaction was something is wrong here. Starting with where investigators found Christian's handgun. It was pressed between his left thigh and the front of the tub. It's significant to me that the gun is in the wrong place on the wrong side. Because he's right-handed. He's right-handed, entrance wound in his right temple. How does the gun end up on his left side? Once the bullet goes through his brain, he's unconscious.

He can't transfer the gun. Crime scene photographs show that the bullet had struck the wall on the opposite side of the bathroom next to the sink. But... Somehow the bullet ends up in the bathtub, and he's leaning over the bathtub. in the bathtub, and he's leaning over the bathtub. So none of this lines up for him to have shot himself in the position where he was found. It simply makes no sense.

Clearly somebody put him there. It's a staged scene. The coroner placed the time of death at 345. But Dr. Arden believes Christian may have died earlier. He says pictures show Christian's body was in advanced rigor mortis. Rigor mortis is the stiffening of the muscles that happens after death. The development of well-formed rigor mortis tells me that he's been in that position unmoved, undisturbed for at least several hours. Which, if accurate, suggests that Christian may have already been dead when Dylan went to the credit union to empty Christian's bank account.

So, yeah, I believe my son's dead and I believe he's trying to steal his money. The evidence led Dr. Arden to reach a dramatic conclusion. Somebody else shot and killed him. I don't see how you can argue with forensics. Science doesn't lie, people lie. Why would someone want your son dead? Well, that's the answers, you know, that we would like. The scene was altered or staged.

And usually when you do that, you're hiding something. The family worked with a team of private investigators, including Sheila Wysocki, to dig further. The Andreacchios have had to fight tooth and nail for the truth. The investigators recorded an interview with Dylan Swearengen a few weeks after Christian died. Since you are one of the only three people that were even there that day. He had this to say about his visit to the credit union. That's the only thing I didn't understand. Why did he want me to have this money? Dylan told them that Whitley and Christian were always fighting and that Christian didn't trust her, even sending Dylan to spy on her.

I was kind of like the babysitter. He always would ask me to check on her, see what she's doing. And Dylan repeated that he, and not Whitley, discovered Christian's body. When I opened the door, he was hunched over the bathtub. And I knew he wasn't alive. That's the way he was just sitting there, and I had to uptake him. Whitley's mom, Christy, says the day Christian died wasn't the first time he allegedly threatened suicide, and that Whitley told her about an incident that happened about two months before his death.

He had gotten intoxicated and getting angry and heated, and he had put the gun to his head, and he even would put it to her head, and he was asking her if she loved him. But remember, when police asked Whitley if Christian had ever appeared suicidal, she said she didn't think so. Ray and Todd don't believe their son

ever held a gun to his head. We don't think it happened. That does not sound like Christian to you. No, no. However, investigators found a misspelled message on Christian's phone that was sent to Whitley the night before he died. If this doesn't work when I get to my apartment,

I'm putting my pistol in my mouth and I'm ending this. I'm ending this once and for all because, Whitley, you're the closest I have ever been to happiness. I don't trust any of the texts because they were in possession of his phone. Don't forget, Whitley had Christian's phone at the police station. Todd and Ray believe the message could have been planted. District Attorney Cassie Coleman dismisses that theory. The phone was on the tugboat with Christian at the time that those messages were sent. And so I do not know of any way that those messages could have been

manipulated to appear that they were coming from the boat if she was a Meridian. Three years after Christian's death, Benny DuBose, who had taken over as police chief, decided it was time to get fresh eyes to look at the case. He assigned Captain Jay Arrington. Gave him the case. He worked his butt off. Captain Arrington, a 30-year veteran detective of the Meridian PD, combed through the case file and came up with a conclusion that Christian's family had long waited to hear. It's homicide.

Are you sure of that? Absolutely. And do you believe that Christian's body was moved at that scene, that somebody moved it after his death? I have no doubt. Captain Arrington, like Dr. Arden, concluded that Christian had been dead for several hours before the 911 call was made, allowing time for a cleanup.

Death scene had obviously been altered from its original state. Arrington wrote arrest warrants for Whitley and Dillon. The charge, manslaughter by culpable negligence, which means unintentionally causing a death while acting with disregard for the person's safety. Were those warrants ever served? No, sir. In February 2017, before Cassie Coleman took over, her predecessor decided to hand off the case to the Mississippi State Attorney General's office. They wouldn't comment about it with 48 hours.

They wouldn't comment about it with 48 hours. In October 2017, a Mississippi state prosecutor did present the case to a grand jury, but... Were you allowed to present your investigative report at the grand jury? I wasn't allowed to be at the grand jury. It's the only one I've ever had done that way. In all my years, it's the only one. Without ever hearing from the detective who calls this case a homicide,

it's now up to the grand jury whether it will go to trial. Do you believe in a court of law you could get a conviction? A hundred percent. You were a member of the grand jury, correct? Yes, sir. And what decision was made? 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 Informants Lawyer X exclusively on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app,

Apple podcasts or Spotify and listen to more Exhibit C true crime shows early and ad free right now. Have you ever wondered who created that bottle of sriracha that's living in your fridge? Or why nearly every house in America has at least one game of Monopoly? Introducing the best idea yet a brand new podcast from Wondery and T-Boy about the surprising origin stories of the products you're obsessed with and the bolder 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. The woman at the heart of this Southern mystery, Whitley Goodman,

has never spoken publicly about the case until 48 Hours came to town. Whitley started talking when she agreed to meet our camera crew to get some video shots with her mom. Two weeks ago, it just came to me, like out of nowhere. She would not take questions, but she did read a poem. The title is Moist by Whitley Goodman. The verses describe what she says is her tumultuous life after Christian's death. I miss who I was, the person I once was allowed to be, before the anxiety, the pain, and the notoriety, before your name was used in vain as the main source of my pain.

In Whitley's words, she is the victim. Oh, it has been such a war. I guess it's me who we should hate. I'll be everyone's escape. But there has been no escape for the Andracchio family, which suffered a devastating defeat in late 2017 when that grand jury returned their decision to not indict Whitley and Dillon. From the jurors that I have spoken with, they did not believe there was sufficient evidence to prove either of these people guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of either manslaughter or homicide.

The Andreacchios were crushed. I feel like the Meridian Police Department, the Attorney General's office, and everybody involved officially has let us down. They let somebody get away with murder. Whitley's mother sees the grand jury's decision as just. She loved him dearly. The greatest tragedy for her is still losing him and finding him the way she did that day. But the Andreacchios were determined to keep their son's case alive.

So they took to social media, starting their Justice for Christian Facebook page. And in June 2019, a podcast culpable started covering the case. His death was ruled a suicide. The actions of Whitley Goodman and Dylan Swearingen were now being judged by a national audience. The podcast is exposing all the injustices that have happened during this investigation. People from coast to coast became enraged, and they acted on that rage. Among their targets, DA Cassie Coleman. Have you received threats? Yes, sir.

I have received threats towards me, towards my family. Threats of physical violence. Take your time. family. Threats of physical violence. Take your time. There's a lot of tragedy and heartbreak in everybody's family. Do you sleep with a gun by your bedside? Yes, sir. It's that serious? Yes, sir. This past August, the controversy grew even more intense. Right before 48 Hours traveled to Mississippi to cover this story,

Captain Jay Arrington's investigative report from 2017 was made public for the first time. I realized that this was things we had never heard. Arrington writes, It's my thoughts it could be suicide, homicide, or accidental with one of the three to be proved with facts until that is established that death should be classified as a homicide. That's a heck of a sentence.

When you read that, what did you think? I was shocked. We spoke to Cassie Coleman just days after the report was released. Mr. Arrington's findings, this report, was it presented to the grand jury? Yes. I have had conversations with grand jurors that were on the grand jury, and I've had conversations with the investigators that were there presenting the facts. And they tell me that all of the reports from the Meridian Police Department were presented.

But while we were reporting in Mississippi, we found a grand juror who said that's not true. You were a member of the grand jury that was looking into the Christian Andracchio case, correct? Yes, sir. The grand juror agreed to speak if we agreed not to use her name or show her face. agreed to speak if we agreed not to use her name or show her face. I'm holding a report here that is dated January 11th, 2017, and it was written by a Captain Jay Arrington. At the time, had you heard this man's name before?

No, sir. I read her all the major findings of Captain Arrington's report, none of which the jurors said she knew. Does that bother you? Is that something that you find in any way disturbing? Yes, it's very disturbing because it seems that he had a lot more information detailed in his report than what we were presented. I think it's a travesty. I think my son deserves more than that. Now, with the release of Errington's explosive report,

the Andreacchios were finally beginning to think maybe they might have one last chance at justice for Christian. I think we need feds or somebody to come in here and clear this up. I don't trust anybody over in Meridian. I don't trust that DA we got right now. I wouldn't want her anywhere near my son's case. 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 a Chicago housing project.

It was about this supernatural killer who would 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. 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? 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, with a 48-hour plus subscription on Apple Podcasts. This past November, like they do every year, the Andreacchio family and their friends celebrated Christian's life. Today is Christian's birthday, November 4th, and this is our seventh night to

have Wishing Night. Heartfelt messages are written on these lanterns and sent floating toward the heavens. Wishing Night is kind of a way of just letting Christian know we haven't forgotten him. letting Christian know we haven't forgotten him. This peaceful evening stands in contrast to the war of words and deeds in this emotional case, fueled by social media that includes acts of cruelty. All of Christian's autopsy photos were placed on social media and I think downloaded over 2,000 times. They harassed my daughter. I still believe someone set her car on fire. We've been run off the road. You're kidding. Absolutely not.

I bought a new car and within three weeks it had bullet holes in it. In our interview with District Attorney Coleman, she said she would reconvene a grand jury if it turned out that Captain Arrington's report had not been presented. I have said repeatedly and stand by, if that information was not presented, then yes, that is a situation that would open the door to allow the case to be represented to the grand jury. Three months later. Hey Cassie, it's Peter Van Sant with 48 Hours. How are you? I told Coleman that 48 Hours learned from that grand juror that she was not informed of Captain Arrington's 2017 report, a fact that may have changed her opinion on this

case. I think they should have done more investigating and brought it back to a grand jury again with more evidence, especially that report, to present it to another jury to decide if that it would be indicted or not. Coleman confirmed that Arrington's report was not presented to the grand jury and said she is willing to reconvene a new grand jury. She acknowledges the Andreacchio family doesn't trust her to present the case, so Coleman is trying to find another prosecutor. We're 100% confident that if the information is presented fairly, that people will be indicted, and then, of course, from there, there'll be a trial. Complicating matters further, nearly three years after he finished his report,

Captain Arrington was indicted in federal court, accused of using city funds for his personal use. Arrington's attorney, Jay Stewart Parrish. The allegations are false. parish. The allegations are false. They arise apparently from somebody either intentionally or maliciously misleading other folks. Caught in the middle of all this are Dylan Swearingen and Whitley Goodman's families. Is there anything that you would like to say to the Andracchio family? That we love Christian. We grieve for him, too.

And we grieve for him. Whitley Goodman's attorney, Bradley Clanton, filed a $47 million lawsuit against the Andracchio family, the podcast Culpable, and others for defamation and emotional distress. You can't torture people for the rest of their lives because they got accused of a crime. The civil suit also seeks an injunction to shut down the Justice for Christian Facebook page and end their public accusations. You've had four to five law enforcement agencies all the way up to the Mississippi Attorney General look at this, and everyone has reached the same conclusion, that it's a suicide. I was so confused whenever I started being blamed. I really was. You know, if they were so weak-minded that they took pride in, you know, hurting me without even asking me

or confirming, you know, what the truth is, then I don't want anything to do with them. There's only one life destroyed, actually destroyed, and that's my son. He's not here anymore. Today, Christian would have been 28. So the case goes on. I think that they wake up every morning and they have a choice of what they're going to do with their day. You know, they get to go out and live and love and travel and get married if they want to and have kids. And, you know, Christian, that's a choice taken away from him.

Doesn't he deserve justice? Don't we deserve answers? I'm Erin Moriarty, 48 hours, and this is my life of crime. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. The role of a journalist is to bring Americans a greater understanding. We have to make sure that we're right, that we're fair, but also hopefully bring Americans closer together. If you like this podcast, you can listen ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app.

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