Dave Fleming

It's the people inside screaming at each other, yelling everything under the sun. That's really when you're like, man, is it too late to turn back? And then the strangest thing happened. The room that they took us to to interview Charles is where families go. And so you turn after this giant steel door closes and you're like, what am I doing?

It's the people inside screaming at each other, yelling everything under the sun. That's really when you're like, man, is it too late to turn back? And then the strangest thing happened. The room that they took us to to interview Charles is where families go. And so you turn after this giant steel door closes and you're like, what am I doing?

You turn, you go into the room and the walls are painted with cartoon characters. And I'm staring at Cookie Monster, My Little Pony, SpongeBob SquarePants. And I'm like, wow, we really are down a rabbit hole.

You turn, you go into the room and the walls are painted with cartoon characters. And I'm staring at Cookie Monster, My Little Pony, SpongeBob SquarePants. And I'm like, wow, we really are down a rabbit hole.

You can't stop scrolling. This is William Prince Davis, prisoner number 614. He was executed on September 4th, 1999. His last statement was, quote, I just thank the Lord for all that he has done for me. That is all. That is all I have to say, warden. Oh, and I would just like to say in closing, what about those cowboys?

You can't stop scrolling. This is William Prince Davis, prisoner number 614. He was executed on September 4th, 1999. His last statement was, quote, I just thank the Lord for all that he has done for me. That is all. That is all I have to say, warden. Oh, and I would just like to say in closing, what about those cowboys?

I'm starting to get into my thoughts, right? And it's starting to spiral. And then Charles comes in.

I'm starting to get into my thoughts, right? And it's starting to spiral. And then Charles comes in.

Okay, okay. And we sort of make eye contact. We kind of say hello through the glass.

Okay, okay. And we sort of make eye contact. We kind of say hello through the glass.

Okay. You guys want me to let the phones hang or leave them here? And Charles kind of saves me because it's clear that he wants to talk football. I looked at the Cowboys' schedule before we came over here, and I noticed, okay, they play the Texans. Is it like week? I think it's 11. Okay.

Okay. You guys want me to let the phones hang or leave them here? And Charles kind of saves me because it's clear that he wants to talk football. I looked at the Cowboys' schedule before we came over here, and I noticed, okay, they play the Texans. Is it like week? I think it's 11. Okay.

Week 11. Yes. Charles grew up big. You can tell that from the clips that we're watching. Was an offensive and defensive lineman in middle school. And the first thing he wants to talk about is the Cowboys-Texans game on Monday night, of course.

Week 11. Yes. Charles grew up big. You can tell that from the clips that we're watching. Was an offensive and defensive lineman in middle school. And the first thing he wants to talk about is the Cowboys-Texans game on Monday night, of course.

His cell, smaller than this studio, 9 by 12? It's probably...

His cell, smaller than this studio, 9 by 12? It's probably...

Some of the death row cells are actually as small as 60 square feet, and they are in there 23 hours a day without exception.

Some of the death row cells are actually as small as 60 square feet, and they are in there 23 hours a day without exception.

He described the two vertical windows, thin windows with the mesh screen on those grates, those vertical grates at the front of his cell. And basically they have to go there and sort of put an eye between the grate to see the community television that, by the way, just showed up a couple of years ago.

He described the two vertical windows, thin windows with the mesh screen on those grates, those vertical grates at the front of his cell. And basically they have to go there and sort of put an eye between the grate to see the community television that, by the way, just showed up a couple of years ago.

The fact that it's his legal papers that he's using to help him with his sports fandom, it's perfect. It is quaint in a way.

The fact that it's his legal papers that he's using to help him with his sports fandom, it's perfect. It is quaint in a way.

I don't want to overstep or anything like that, but basically my question was, Trash talk could be dangerous, can it? In a prison? I mean, it's like, I'm not going to trash talk anybody. And he had a really interesting explanation for that.

I don't want to overstep or anything like that, but basically my question was, Trash talk could be dangerous, can it? In a prison? I mean, it's like, I'm not going to trash talk anybody. And he had a really interesting explanation for that.

No, no, there's a shockingly large amount of death row prisoners who used that final opportunity to shout out their favorite sports teams.

No, no, there's a shockingly large amount of death row prisoners who used that final opportunity to shout out their favorite sports teams.

Is that scary? I mean, you're talking trash with, you could be talking trash with some pretty bad dudes, right?

Is that scary? I mean, you're talking trash with, you could be talking trash with some pretty bad dudes, right?

Right? It was kind of like, it was like he's, it's just classic Cowboys fan. Almost more so, almost more pure.

Right? It was kind of like, it was like he's, it's just classic Cowboys fan. Almost more so, almost more pure.

It's kind of like what we were just talking about. It's like every other fan, right? There's a whole ritual.

It's kind of like what we were just talking about. It's like every other fan, right? There's a whole ritual.

And is that something you guys are like, okay, what are we going to eat? Yes. Okay.

And is that something you guys are like, okay, what are we going to eat? Yes. Okay.

Okay.

Okay.

He's as proud of the food and the tailgate, right, as any Georgia Bulldog fan, as any LSU tailgater.

He's as proud of the food and the tailgate, right, as any Georgia Bulldog fan, as any LSU tailgater.

Right. That's an incredible thing to be on death row. And it's like, oh, my God, there's no difference.

Right. That's an incredible thing to be on death row. And it's like, oh, my God, there's no difference.

Oh, we went there. How did you guys even draft players, though? Or how do you... Is it all through the window? Mostly it was week to week.

Oh, we went there. How did you guys even draft players, though? Or how do you... Is it all through the window? Mostly it was week to week.

I always thought that fishing thing was in movies.

I always thought that fishing thing was in movies.

It's real. It's real. And they're not using it for anything nefarious. They're using it to submit their fantasy football lineup.

It's real. It's real. And they're not using it for anything nefarious. They're using it to submit their fantasy football lineup.

I think your initial reaction was the same as mine, which is just sports means too much. This is crazy. Why wouldn't you talk about the victim or your families or regrets or anything like that? You're going to shout out the Cowboys? It's like... what does sports really mean to people? Right.

I think your initial reaction was the same as mine, which is just sports means too much. This is crazy. Why wouldn't you talk about the victim or your families or regrets or anything like that? You're going to shout out the Cowboys? It's like... what does sports really mean to people? Right.

Right. And just enjoying this conversation, one fantasy football player to another, and you sort of get lost in that. You forget where you are. And then there's this gut punch. What happened to your league?

Right. And just enjoying this conversation, one fantasy football player to another, and you sort of get lost in that. You forget where you are. And then there's this gut punch. What happened to your league?

The conversation kind of lured us into, oh, we're all the same. This is all the same. It's like, no, we're not. His has one very dreadful, awful difference.

The conversation kind of lured us into, oh, we're all the same. This is all the same. It's like, no, we're not. His has one very dreadful, awful difference.

You know, one of the things in our early emails that we exchanged was this memory he had of springing the game-winning touchdown with a great block when he was in eighth grade. And he mentioned that writing about that little detail of his football career still gave him chills 40 years later. The other detail that he added that I loved was he wore 79 in honor of Harvey Martin, the cowboy great.

You know, one of the things in our early emails that we exchanged was this memory he had of springing the game-winning touchdown with a great block when he was in eighth grade. And he mentioned that writing about that little detail of his football career still gave him chills 40 years later. The other detail that he added that I loved was he wore 79 in honor of Harvey Martin, the cowboy great.

It was a ritual. Go to church, come home, gather around the TV, root on the Cowboys.

It was a ritual. Go to church, come home, gather around the TV, root on the Cowboys.

That deep connection to the Cowboys, it sort of, it continued once Charles was put on death row.

That deep connection to the Cowboys, it sort of, it continued once Charles was put on death row.

How do they even have access to sports? Right. How can they be Cowboys fans and Raiders fans? Are they arguing about Dak Prescott? Right. Are they playing fantasy football? Are they, is there trash talk?

How do they even have access to sports? Right. How can they be Cowboys fans and Raiders fans? Are they arguing about Dak Prescott? Right. Are they playing fantasy football? Are they, is there trash talk?

It gets sadder because he's been there so long now. Both his parents, that ritual is gone now because both of his parents have passed away. And as you listen to Charles, you understand that with his parents gone, that's just made sports all the more important to Charles and his survival on death row.

It gets sadder because he's been there so long now. Both his parents, that ritual is gone now because both of his parents have passed away. And as you listen to Charles, you understand that with his parents gone, that's just made sports all the more important to Charles and his survival on death row.

The way I interpreted what he was saying was he lives in a way where 24 hours a day, seven days a week, someone's trying to kill him. That's the white noise of his life. He doesn't know when it's going to happen, but that's the stress that he lives under.

The way I interpreted what he was saying was he lives in a way where 24 hours a day, seven days a week, someone's trying to kill him. That's the white noise of his life. He doesn't know when it's going to happen, but that's the stress that he lives under.

And so the line about how maybe the crazy ones are the ones who continue to live on death row and the sane ones are the ones who check out by committing suicide. I mean, if there's a better way to explain the insanity and the pressure that they live under, I haven't read it.

And so the line about how maybe the crazy ones are the ones who continue to live on death row and the sane ones are the ones who check out by committing suicide. I mean, if there's a better way to explain the insanity and the pressure that they live under, I haven't read it.

There are websites, there are databases where they will connect you to be a pen pal to people in prison, especially to people on death row who are exceptionally isolated usually. You get to look at their bio, sort of what their crime was when they were put in prison, what are their interests. And, you know, I came across a guy who had potential.

There are websites, there are databases where they will connect you to be a pen pal to people in prison, especially to people on death row who are exceptionally isolated usually. You get to look at their bio, sort of what their crime was when they were put in prison, what are their interests. And, you know, I came across a guy who had potential.

It's just amazing that one day two of these prisoners were talking and they were like, maybe we're the crazy ones because we've adapted to live like this.

It's just amazing that one day two of these prisoners were talking and they were like, maybe we're the crazy ones because we've adapted to live like this.

Yeah, we can survive in this situation. It's stunning.

Yeah, we can survive in this situation. It's stunning.

Yeah, that was the whole point of this exercise, right? Is to find out why someone would love sports that much. that they would include it in their last words. And before even leaving on this assignment, I shared this database with a anthropologist in Chicago. Her name is Dr. Shannon Lee Doughty. And she is an expert in death rituals. And I just wanted to get her opinion on it.

Yeah, that was the whole point of this exercise, right? Is to find out why someone would love sports that much. that they would include it in their last words. And before even leaving on this assignment, I shared this database with a anthropologist in Chicago. Her name is Dr. Shannon Lee Doughty. And she is an expert in death rituals. And I just wanted to get her opinion on it.

And I really, at this point, asked her in almost a flippant way about get a load of these death row inmates who are using their last words for sports shout-outs. she immediately connected it to this concept called social death.

And I really, at this point, asked her in almost a flippant way about get a load of these death row inmates who are using their last words for sports shout-outs. she immediately connected it to this concept called social death.

I wanted to go get Charles' opinion and his thoughts on his own last words. Yes. But it turns out he and his attorney, you know, they don't want him to be seen as somebody who is contemplating being executed.

I wanted to go get Charles' opinion and his thoughts on his own last words. Yes. But it turns out he and his attorney, you know, they don't want him to be seen as somebody who is contemplating being executed.

He was a lifelong Cowboys fan, grew up in Fort Worth. His dad was in the Air Force. They had a family ritual of going to church every Sunday and then coming home and sitting down in front of the TV to watch the Cowboys. You know, you just kind of knew right away. It was like, okay, this guy is a legit sports fan.

He was a lifelong Cowboys fan, grew up in Fort Worth. His dad was in the Air Force. They had a family ritual of going to church every Sunday and then coming home and sitting down in front of the TV to watch the Cowboys. You know, you just kind of knew right away. It was like, okay, this guy is a legit sports fan.

There's a saying, there's always next year.

There's a saying, there's always next year.

But for you, the future's uncertain.

But for you, the future's uncertain.

There isn't always next year, I guess.

There isn't always next year, I guess.

So if you predict it every year, eventually you'll be right.

So if you predict it every year, eventually you'll be right.

One of the first things that you and I talked about was the trend of inmates shouting out their teams with their last words. And it seemed like that was something you could understand, right? Because of the connection to sports?

One of the first things that you and I talked about was the trend of inmates shouting out their teams with their last words. And it seemed like that was something you could understand, right? Because of the connection to sports?

That's profound. I mean, Charles, again, gives just the most incredible insight. It's the sort of thing you just want to sit with for a while. Unfortunately, we had reached the end of our hour and they were very strict about it. I got a 10-minute warning. And so here we are just sort of... The clock again ticking on this. Yes, exactly.

That's profound. I mean, Charles, again, gives just the most incredible insight. It's the sort of thing you just want to sit with for a while. Unfortunately, we had reached the end of our hour and they were very strict about it. I got a 10-minute warning. And so here we are just sort of... The clock again ticking on this. Yes, exactly.

And now we're packing up and he has to wait for a guard then to re-cuff him, hand back the wireless mic, and take him back to his 23 hours of isolation. And so we can't talk anymore, but Charles is sitting there watching us pack up.

And now we're packing up and he has to wait for a guard then to re-cuff him, hand back the wireless mic, and take him back to his 23 hours of isolation. And so we can't talk anymore, but Charles is sitting there watching us pack up.

And that was as close as we all came to getting emotional and even crying because the look on Charles' face, and I know he was trying to hide this, was just a look of like, you guys get to leave. He's imagining that we get to leave. The look on his face is easily one of the saddest things that I've ever experienced on this job in 30 years.

And that was as close as we all came to getting emotional and even crying because the look on Charles' face, and I know he was trying to hide this, was just a look of like, you guys get to leave. He's imagining that we get to leave. The look on his face is easily one of the saddest things that I've ever experienced on this job in 30 years.

We correspond back and forth over several weeks. I would say about half a dozen emails in. This guy just said, well, if you're so interested in talking, why don't you just come to Texas and we'll talk in person?

We correspond back and forth over several weeks. I would say about half a dozen emails in. This guy just said, well, if you're so interested in talking, why don't you just come to Texas and we'll talk in person?

And it got to the point where I couldn't look at him anymore. because you just feel so helpless and you just feel so much empathy for this other human being and the situation that he's in. in the strangest place, under the worst conditions, through sports, we've kind of bridged this disconnect. And trying to face that moment again, I went back and listened to the tapes.

And it got to the point where I couldn't look at him anymore. because you just feel so helpless and you just feel so much empathy for this other human being and the situation that he's in. in the strangest place, under the worst conditions, through sports, we've kind of bridged this disconnect. And trying to face that moment again, I went back and listened to the tapes.

And I realized that as my mic is cut, Charles is still live. And so you can hear him. Will you listen? He's talking to the guard that comes to escort him back, and he's wondering how the interview went and talking about the Cowboys.

And I realized that as my mic is cut, Charles is still live. And so you can hear him. Will you listen? He's talking to the guard that comes to escort him back, and he's wondering how the interview went and talking about the Cowboys.

Like, man, look, this is Texan territory. Yeah. And you can hear him physically exchanging our microphone for the clinking and clanking of the handcuffs.

Like, man, look, this is Texan territory. Yeah. And you can hear him physically exchanging our microphone for the clinking and clanking of the handcuffs.

And that is another really sort of profound moment of... It's over. We all have to go back to our normal lives.

And that is another really sort of profound moment of... It's over. We all have to go back to our normal lives.

Pablo, it was my pleasure, and I'm glad we went.

Pablo, it was my pleasure, and I'm glad we went.

Yes, and the next thing I know, I'm on a plane to Texas.

Yes, and the next thing I know, I'm on a plane to Texas.

His name is Charles Flores. In 1999, at the age of 29, he was sentenced to death for his role in a burglary in the town of Farmers Branch, Texas, which is near Irving, which is actually where the Cowboys, their whole facility is. It's their headquarters. Yes. During this burglary, a 64-year-old woman named Betty Black was killed.

His name is Charles Flores. In 1999, at the age of 29, he was sentenced to death for his role in a burglary in the town of Farmers Branch, Texas, which is near Irving, which is actually where the Cowboys, their whole facility is. It's their headquarters. Yes. During this burglary, a 64-year-old woman named Betty Black was killed.

And Charles was then convicted for being an accomplice to that murder, which was part of the burglary. He was then sentenced to death row, where he has been for the last 25 years. And the default in Texas is solitary confinement for death row prisoners for up to 23 hours a day.

And Charles was then convicted for being an accomplice to that murder, which was part of the burglary. He was then sentenced to death row, where he has been for the last 25 years. And the default in Texas is solitary confinement for death row prisoners for up to 23 hours a day.

He was not the gunman and was never accused of being the gunman. There is no DNA evidence linking him to the crime whatsoever. Charles has always maintained his innocence and he's actually provided an alibi for the night of the burglary and the murder. But that's not even the craziest part of this whole story. The craziest part is that the actual gunman, Richard Childs,

He was not the gunman and was never accused of being the gunman. There is no DNA evidence linking him to the crime whatsoever. Charles has always maintained his innocence and he's actually provided an alibi for the night of the burglary and the murder. But that's not even the craziest part of this whole story. The craziest part is that the actual gunman, Richard Childs,

He pled guilty immediately. He served 17 years of a 35-year sentence. And as we speak right now, he is free and out of prison. He's a free man. He was actually released in 2016, right about the same time that Charles got his execution date from the state of Texas.

He pled guilty immediately. He served 17 years of a 35-year sentence. And as we speak right now, he is free and out of prison. He's a free man. He was actually released in 2016, right about the same time that Charles got his execution date from the state of Texas.

Right. If you are part of a felony, it's like everybody pulled the trigger.

Right. If you are part of a felony, it's like everybody pulled the trigger.

It started with me coming across a website, a database, where you can read the final last statements of every prisoner that's been executed by the state of Texas. Me being me, I went down that rabbit hole, started reading them. It is a gut-wrenching, awful, exhausting experience.

It started with me coming across a website, a database, where you can read the final last statements of every prisoner that's been executed by the state of Texas. Me being me, I went down that rabbit hole, started reading them. It is a gut-wrenching, awful, exhausting experience.

So this woman comes out of hypnosis. They draw a composite sketch. It looks like the guy who actually pulled the trigger and admitted pulling the trigger. Skinny, white, long hair. Charles is heavyset, Hispanic, and he had a buzz cut at the time.

So this woman comes out of hypnosis. They draw a composite sketch. It looks like the guy who actually pulled the trigger and admitted pulling the trigger. Skinny, white, long hair. Charles is heavyset, Hispanic, and he had a buzz cut at the time.

So it wasn't until 13 months later in a court when the woman said, oh yeah, there he is. That's who she pointed out as being at the scene of the crime.

So it wasn't until 13 months later in a court when the woman said, oh yeah, there he is. That's who she pointed out as being at the scene of the crime.

He was into some bad stuff, and he admits that. What we're saying is, it's very clear that at the very least, he doesn't deserve to be on death row or in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day for a quarter century.

He was into some bad stuff, and he admits that. What we're saying is, it's very clear that at the very least, he doesn't deserve to be on death row or in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day for a quarter century.

Yeah, I had to go to the Polonsky Unit in Livingston, Texas, which is a notorious prison, always ranked as one of the most dangerous, worst prisons in the world. There are all kinds of hoops that you have to go through, right? You have to submit to a background check. You have to agree to all these restrictions. You are allowed exactly one hour of rolling cameras.

Yeah, I had to go to the Polonsky Unit in Livingston, Texas, which is a notorious prison, always ranked as one of the most dangerous, worst prisons in the world. There are all kinds of hoops that you have to go through, right? You have to submit to a background check. You have to agree to all these restrictions. You are allowed exactly one hour of rolling cameras.

You have to submit a list of every piece of equipment down to pen and paper. So I was kind of freaking the f*** out and wondering why I couldn't go to the Family Feud or smoke celebrity weed. Like,

You have to submit a list of every piece of equipment down to pen and paper. So I was kind of freaking the f*** out and wondering why I couldn't go to the Family Feud or smoke celebrity weed. Like,

Where this really got real for me was when right before we arrived, they reminded us nobody can wear white. And that's because that's what the death row inmates wear. They're required to wear white. And so you step in and the first thing that happens in this guard shack, you get a big boy search.

Where this really got real for me was when right before we arrived, they reminded us nobody can wear white. And that's because that's what the death row inmates wear. They're required to wear white. And so you step in and the first thing that happens in this guard shack, you get a big boy search.

No, this is a thorough search. I look to my right, and I just happen to see the open closet where they keep all the guns, hundreds of guns and shotguns, in case something happens at the prison. You make it through that. You're still not in the prison yet. You come out, and you are now between the fences.

No, this is a thorough search. I look to my right, and I just happen to see the open closet where they keep all the guns, hundreds of guns and shotguns, in case something happens at the prison. You make it through that. You're still not in the prison yet. You come out, and you are now between the fences.

And it's perfectly aligned with the gun towers because they need to have a clean shot if someone makes it through that fence.

And it's perfectly aligned with the gun towers because they need to have a clean shot if someone makes it through that fence.

It's the people inside screaming at each other, yelling everything under the sun. That's really when you're like, man, is it too late to turn back? And then the strangest thing happened. The room that they took us to to interview Charles is where families go. And so you turn after this giant steel door closes and you're like, what am I doing?

You turn, you go into the room and the walls are painted with cartoon characters. And I'm staring at Cookie Monster, My Little Pony, SpongeBob SquarePants. And I'm like, wow, we really are down a rabbit hole.

You can't stop scrolling. This is William Prince Davis, prisoner number 614. He was executed on September 4th, 1999. His last statement was, quote, I just thank the Lord for all that he has done for me. That is all. That is all I have to say, warden. Oh, and I would just like to say in closing, what about those cowboys?

I'm starting to get into my thoughts, right? And it's starting to spiral. And then Charles comes in.

Okay, okay. And we sort of make eye contact. We kind of say hello through the glass.

Okay. You guys want me to let the phones hang or leave them here? And Charles kind of saves me because it's clear that he wants to talk football. I looked at the Cowboys' schedule before we came over here, and I noticed, okay, they play the Texans. Is it like week? I think it's 11. Okay.

Week 11. Yes. Charles grew up big. You can tell that from the clips that we're watching. Was an offensive and defensive lineman in middle school. And the first thing he wants to talk about is the Cowboys-Texans game on Monday night, of course.

His cell, smaller than this studio, 9 by 12? It's probably...

Some of the death row cells are actually as small as 60 square feet, and they are in there 23 hours a day without exception.

He described the two vertical windows, thin windows with the mesh screen on those grates, those vertical grates at the front of his cell. And basically they have to go there and sort of put an eye between the grate to see the community television that, by the way, just showed up a couple of years ago.

The fact that it's his legal papers that he's using to help him with his sports fandom, it's perfect. It is quaint in a way.

I don't want to overstep or anything like that, but basically my question was, Trash talk could be dangerous, can it? In a prison? I mean, it's like, I'm not going to trash talk anybody. And he had a really interesting explanation for that.

No, no, there's a shockingly large amount of death row prisoners who used that final opportunity to shout out their favorite sports teams.

Is that scary? I mean, you're talking trash with, you could be talking trash with some pretty bad dudes, right?

Right? It was kind of like, it was like he's, it's just classic Cowboys fan. Almost more so, almost more pure.

It's kind of like what we were just talking about. It's like every other fan, right? There's a whole ritual.

And is that something you guys are like, okay, what are we going to eat? Yes. Okay.

Okay.

He's as proud of the food and the tailgate, right, as any Georgia Bulldog fan, as any LSU tailgater.

Right. That's an incredible thing to be on death row. And it's like, oh, my God, there's no difference.

Oh, we went there. How did you guys even draft players, though? Or how do you... Is it all through the window? Mostly it was week to week.

I always thought that fishing thing was in movies.

It's real. It's real. And they're not using it for anything nefarious. They're using it to submit their fantasy football lineup.

I think your initial reaction was the same as mine, which is just sports means too much. This is crazy. Why wouldn't you talk about the victim or your families or regrets or anything like that? You're going to shout out the Cowboys? It's like... what does sports really mean to people? Right.

Right. And just enjoying this conversation, one fantasy football player to another, and you sort of get lost in that. You forget where you are. And then there's this gut punch. What happened to your league?

The conversation kind of lured us into, oh, we're all the same. This is all the same. It's like, no, we're not. His has one very dreadful, awful difference.

You know, one of the things in our early emails that we exchanged was this memory he had of springing the game-winning touchdown with a great block when he was in eighth grade. And he mentioned that writing about that little detail of his football career still gave him chills 40 years later. The other detail that he added that I loved was he wore 79 in honor of Harvey Martin, the cowboy great.

It was a ritual. Go to church, come home, gather around the TV, root on the Cowboys.

That deep connection to the Cowboys, it sort of, it continued once Charles was put on death row.

How do they even have access to sports? Right. How can they be Cowboys fans and Raiders fans? Are they arguing about Dak Prescott? Right. Are they playing fantasy football? Are they, is there trash talk?

It gets sadder because he's been there so long now. Both his parents, that ritual is gone now because both of his parents have passed away. And as you listen to Charles, you understand that with his parents gone, that's just made sports all the more important to Charles and his survival on death row.

The way I interpreted what he was saying was he lives in a way where 24 hours a day, seven days a week, someone's trying to kill him. That's the white noise of his life. He doesn't know when it's going to happen, but that's the stress that he lives under.

And so the line about how maybe the crazy ones are the ones who continue to live on death row and the sane ones are the ones who check out by committing suicide. I mean, if there's a better way to explain the insanity and the pressure that they live under, I haven't read it.

There are websites, there are databases where they will connect you to be a pen pal to people in prison, especially to people on death row who are exceptionally isolated usually. You get to look at their bio, sort of what their crime was when they were put in prison, what are their interests. And, you know, I came across a guy who had potential.

It's just amazing that one day two of these prisoners were talking and they were like, maybe we're the crazy ones because we've adapted to live like this.

Yeah, we can survive in this situation. It's stunning.

Yeah, that was the whole point of this exercise, right? Is to find out why someone would love sports that much. that they would include it in their last words. And before even leaving on this assignment, I shared this database with a anthropologist in Chicago. Her name is Dr. Shannon Lee Doughty. And she is an expert in death rituals. And I just wanted to get her opinion on it.

And I really, at this point, asked her in almost a flippant way about get a load of these death row inmates who are using their last words for sports shout-outs. she immediately connected it to this concept called social death.

I wanted to go get Charles' opinion and his thoughts on his own last words. Yes. But it turns out he and his attorney, you know, they don't want him to be seen as somebody who is contemplating being executed.

He was a lifelong Cowboys fan, grew up in Fort Worth. His dad was in the Air Force. They had a family ritual of going to church every Sunday and then coming home and sitting down in front of the TV to watch the Cowboys. You know, you just kind of knew right away. It was like, okay, this guy is a legit sports fan.

There's a saying, there's always next year.

But for you, the future's uncertain.

There isn't always next year, I guess.

So if you predict it every year, eventually you'll be right.

One of the first things that you and I talked about was the trend of inmates shouting out their teams with their last words. And it seemed like that was something you could understand, right? Because of the connection to sports?

That's profound. I mean, Charles, again, gives just the most incredible insight. It's the sort of thing you just want to sit with for a while. Unfortunately, we had reached the end of our hour and they were very strict about it. I got a 10-minute warning. And so here we are just sort of... The clock again ticking on this. Yes, exactly.

And now we're packing up and he has to wait for a guard then to re-cuff him, hand back the wireless mic, and take him back to his 23 hours of isolation. And so we can't talk anymore, but Charles is sitting there watching us pack up.

And that was as close as we all came to getting emotional and even crying because the look on Charles' face, and I know he was trying to hide this, was just a look of like, you guys get to leave. He's imagining that we get to leave. The look on his face is easily one of the saddest things that I've ever experienced on this job in 30 years.

We correspond back and forth over several weeks. I would say about half a dozen emails in. This guy just said, well, if you're so interested in talking, why don't you just come to Texas and we'll talk in person?

And it got to the point where I couldn't look at him anymore. because you just feel so helpless and you just feel so much empathy for this other human being and the situation that he's in. in the strangest place, under the worst conditions, through sports, we've kind of bridged this disconnect. And trying to face that moment again, I went back and listened to the tapes.

And I realized that as my mic is cut, Charles is still live. And so you can hear him. Will you listen? He's talking to the guard that comes to escort him back, and he's wondering how the interview went and talking about the Cowboys.

Like, man, look, this is Texan territory. Yeah. And you can hear him physically exchanging our microphone for the clinking and clanking of the handcuffs.

And that is another really sort of profound moment of... It's over. We all have to go back to our normal lives.

Pablo, it was my pleasure, and I'm glad we went.

Yes, and the next thing I know, I'm on a plane to Texas.

His name is Charles Flores. In 1999, at the age of 29, he was sentenced to death for his role in a burglary in the town of Farmers Branch, Texas, which is near Irving, which is actually where the Cowboys, their whole facility is. It's their headquarters. Yes. During this burglary, a 64-year-old woman named Betty Black was killed.

And Charles was then convicted for being an accomplice to that murder, which was part of the burglary. He was then sentenced to death row, where he has been for the last 25 years. And the default in Texas is solitary confinement for death row prisoners for up to 23 hours a day.

He was not the gunman and was never accused of being the gunman. There is no DNA evidence linking him to the crime whatsoever. Charles has always maintained his innocence and he's actually provided an alibi for the night of the burglary and the murder. But that's not even the craziest part of this whole story. The craziest part is that the actual gunman, Richard Childs,

He pled guilty immediately. He served 17 years of a 35-year sentence. And as we speak right now, he is free and out of prison. He's a free man. He was actually released in 2016, right about the same time that Charles got his execution date from the state of Texas.

Right. If you are part of a felony, it's like everybody pulled the trigger.

It started with me coming across a website, a database, where you can read the final last statements of every prisoner that's been executed by the state of Texas. Me being me, I went down that rabbit hole, started reading them. It is a gut-wrenching, awful, exhausting experience.

So this woman comes out of hypnosis. They draw a composite sketch. It looks like the guy who actually pulled the trigger and admitted pulling the trigger. Skinny, white, long hair. Charles is heavyset, Hispanic, and he had a buzz cut at the time.

So it wasn't until 13 months later in a court when the woman said, oh yeah, there he is. That's who she pointed out as being at the scene of the crime.

He was into some bad stuff, and he admits that. What we're saying is, it's very clear that at the very least, he doesn't deserve to be on death row or in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day for a quarter century.

Yeah, I had to go to the Polonsky Unit in Livingston, Texas, which is a notorious prison, always ranked as one of the most dangerous, worst prisons in the world. There are all kinds of hoops that you have to go through, right? You have to submit to a background check. You have to agree to all these restrictions. You are allowed exactly one hour of rolling cameras.

You have to submit a list of every piece of equipment down to pen and paper. So I was kind of freaking the f*** out and wondering why I couldn't go to the Family Feud or smoke celebrity weed. Like,

Where this really got real for me was when right before we arrived, they reminded us nobody can wear white. And that's because that's what the death row inmates wear. They're required to wear white. And so you step in and the first thing that happens in this guard shack, you get a big boy search.

No, this is a thorough search. I look to my right, and I just happen to see the open closet where they keep all the guns, hundreds of guns and shotguns, in case something happens at the prison. You make it through that. You're still not in the prison yet. You come out, and you are now between the fences.

And it's perfectly aligned with the gun towers because they need to have a clean shot if someone makes it through that fence.