Daryl Burton
Appearances
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
No DNA, no confession, no fingerprint, you know, not even snitch witnesses.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
Yes, wrongfully accused and faced a death penalty and sent to prison for nearly 25 years for a crime that I didn't commit.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
You cannot find a case where you would investigate all of these different avenues and not find something, some connection. It just doesn't happen.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
It don't have to be a smoking gun. It could just be a water pistol. Anything.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
When they get their mind fixed on a suspect, that's almost like you can get a bullseye every time. You know how you get a bullseye every time? Well, you stick the arrow in the tree and you just draw a circle around it.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
And I think that's what they did with Dana. You know, he said, we got this person and we're going to build our case around this person.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
I was feeling she had a good chance. And I said to Dana, I said, you know, Dana, I said, Tom is likable. I said, if he gets in front of a jury, they're going to like him.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
I said, you know, Dana, I don't understand. What are you trying to do? What are you doing? You're not a lawyer. You need an attorney to understand court rules, procedures, and court etiquette. Darla, you know, this is my life. This is my case, and I think I can help myself.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
She was asking him questions that either he didn't recall or refused to acknowledge and answer. And then she would approach him with some documents, reports that he had prepared.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
The prosecution, I mean, these guys, they were literally running circles around Dana.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
She didn't do too good. The whole trial was just painful. It's like you're sitting on the shoreline and you're watching someone drown. You throw them a life preserve and they throw it back. It was just painful.
Dateline NBC
Deadly Obsession
It was sickening. It was crushing. Devastating. She turned and she looked at her family, and she blew them a kiss. And then the sheriff took her out the back door.