Plot Synopsis

FRIENDS SPEAK is a series of specials that reveals the perspectives of those who were friends with notorious criminals or their victims. Each special features first-hand accounts of the days leading up to and the days after some of the countries most notorious crimes. Specials include:

"Casey Anthony: Her Friends Speak" (Premiere Sunday, December 9, 2018 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): No one knows you better than your best friends. You have ups and downs, share the day-to-day triumphs and failures in life and you keep each other's darkest secrets. But what if your closest friend was a killer? This documentary two-hour special offers unprecedented access to Anthony's inner circle. Through intimate interviews and an exclusive reunion Anthony's friends come together to reminisce about the good times, chronicle the downfall of one of their closest confidantes and face their worst fears as a group giving viewers a front row seat to what really happened behind the scenes and witness a tight-knit group of friends finally find closure together. Some friends are like family -- others are killers.

"Jodi Arias: The Friends Speak" (Premiere Sunday, December 8, 2019 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): It was a case that shocked and confused the nation. In 2008 Jodi Arias was found guilty of brutally killing her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander. When the details of the case came to light many questions arose. Was Jodi Arias a sex-crazed stalker with murderous intent? Or was she the victim of abuse at the hands of a controlling boyfriend? This two-hour documentary features people close to both Arias and Alexander who share their first-hand experiences and shed light on the tumultuous relationship. Hear from Chad Perkins, childhood friend to Alexander, who first came to know him through church and who shares with viewers the personal message Arias sent him after the murder. Chris Hughes, Alexander's mentor, self-described big brother figure and one time roommate of the troubled couple, shares his experiences of Arias and Alexander including the time he had to ask Arias to move out after witnessing her disturbing behavior. Also sharing their stories are Alexander's roommate at the time of the murder Enrique Cortez Jr. and Ryan Burns who for a brief time was a love interest to Arias and recalls the eerie experiences he had with her before, during and after Alexander was murdered.

"Chris Watts, Colorado Killer Dad: The Friends Speak" (Premiere Saturday, January 25, 2020 at 7pm ET/ 4pm PT): Chris and Shanann Watts were by all accounts the perfect couple with two adorable children in Celeste and four-year-old Bella. In 2018 this family was shattered by the disappearance and murder of Shanann and the kids at the hands of Chris himself. How is it possible for something this horrific to happen in the sleepy mountain town of Frederick, Colorado, a small suburb north of Denver? Did Chris simply snap the morning of the murders or was it something much more calculated and sinister? Friends and neighbors of the Watts family come together to unravel the secrets behind this story and share their heart wrenching experiences of navigating the aftermath of the tragedy. Viewers will also see chilling police footage of Chris as he unravels from his distraught family man act during police interrogation and his tearful confession to his own father. Also sharing his experience working on the case is Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke who examines the relationship between Chris and Shanann Watts leading up to the murders.

"House of Horrors: The Friends Speak" (Premiere Sunday, March 15, 2020 at 9pm ET/6pm PT): From the outside looking in the Turpin family seemed normal enough but a phone call in January 2018 changed everything. One of David and Louise Turpin's 13 children had escaped from captivity and exposed the dark secrets of what had been happening inside the Turpin family household for decades. Systematic torture and abuse within the walls of the Turpin home are just the tip of the iceberg. At the time of their parents' arrest the siblings ranged in age from two to 29 years old with seven of the 13 children being legal adults. Now those closest to the family including Louise's sister Elizabeth Flores share their first-hand accounts of their experiences with the family as they try to make sense of the nightmare endured by the Turpin children including shackling their children to beds and severe malnourishment. Were David and Louise Turpin mentally ill or sadistic psychopaths? Why didn't the children seek help sooner? Can you ever really know what's going on among a family and inside their home?

"Natalee Holloway: Her Friends Speak" (Premiere Sunday, May 31, 2020 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): Natalee Holloway disappeared while on a school trip in Aruba in 2005. Why and how did this popular and responsible Alabama honors student completely vanish? Evidence points to the man Holloway was last seen with in Joran van der Sloot but as Holloway's parents quickly found out when they visited Aruba to look for their missing daughter local authorities would hardly be an ally in the quest to find Natalee. Now in this two-hour special, friends Mallie Tucker and Claire Fierman speak out about the night Holloway vanished and the nightmare experience that followed. Also sharing their stories are Bob and Cary Plummer who were teachers at Holloway's high school and who chaperoned the Aruba trip. Private investigator T.J. Ward and former secret service agent Arthur Wood give their first-hand accounts of being involved in the search for Holloway and what they think really happened as well as their harsh critique of the Aruban authorities handling of the case.

"The Suicide Texts: The Friends Speak" (Premiere Saturday, November 27, 2021 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): In 2012 while on vacation in Florida teenagers Michelle Carter and Conrad Roy started an innocent friendship that would twist into a fatal story that would break new ground in court cases involving digital communications, First Amendment rights and mental health. Roy committed suicide in 2014 just miles from his childhood home in Fairhaven Massachusetts. In the aftermath authorities discovered tens of thousands of text messages between Roy and Carter that showed a dark bond between them in which Carter advocates and encourages Roy to commit suicide. In 2017 Carter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter. At the crux of the case was the question: Can your words actually make someone kill themselves? Sharing their deeply personal experience is Roy's mother Lynn St. Denis and sisters Camdyn and Morgan who discuss their life with Conrad, what they knew of relationship with Carter, the trial and whether they feel Carter's punishment was justice served. Discussing his time reporting on the case and trial is retired Massachusetts reporter Curt Brown along with Dr. Eric Bender who works as an Adolescent Forensic Psychologist and gives viewers insight into the mental health aspects of the story.

"Grim Sleeper: His Friends Speak" (Premiere Sunday, November 28, 2021 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): Friends close to Lonnie Franklin Jr. recall he was a great single father known for making reasonable deals fixing neighbors' cars in his backyard garage. What they didn't know was that he had a murderous alter ego. For more than 20 years Franklin preyed on sex workers in Los Angeles and is responsible for at least 10 murders. As deaths mounted local media referred to the killer as the Southside Slayer, the .25 Caliber Killer and the Strawberry Killer but it was Franklin's ominous 14 year break from killing that earned him the final nickname as the Grim Sleeper. In this two-hour special, five of Franklin's former friends and neighbors speak out about their experiences with him including his live-in nanny Charlene Smith who shares details of their personal relationship and the scary changes in his behavior over time. Joining Smith are other former sex workers who crossed paths with Franklin including Dominique Smith who dated him for years and neighbor Richard Harris who shares his stories of Franklin's disturbing hobby collecting nude photos of women as well as Franklin's hardline rules about no personal friendships or allowing anyone inside of his house. Giving viewers first-hand insight into the Grim Sleeper case is retired LAPD investigator Cliff Shepard.

"Affluenza Teen: The Friends Speak" (Premiere Saturday, January 8, 2022 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): From birth Ethan Couch was raised in a bubble of wealth, privilege and lack of consequences. His reckless teenage behavior escalated out of control in a series of incidents that culminated in Couch driving drunk and killing four people while also severely injuring nine more. During his trial and sentencing a radical defense of "affluenza" was presented and became a self-fulfilling prophecy. Couch received a lenient sentence when a jury agreed that he had been sheltered by wealth his whole life and did not develop a sense of consequences and morals. Now, in this special, people intimately connected to the story sit down to share their experiences including Kevin McConnell who was first on the scene of the crash which also injured his son Lucas. Joining him are his other son Sheldon McConnell and Tim Williams who were both at the scene and whose friend and youth pastor Brian "BJ" Williams died in the crash. Together they discuss processing the horrors of the scene, that dubious probation only sentence, the role of Couch's parents in the tragedy and why Tim decided to meet with Couch in jail. Also interviewed are investigative journalist Mark Ebner discussing the public outcry surrounding the case and forensic psychiatrist Dr. Eric Bender who discusses the "affluenza" defense from a clinical perspective.

"Scott Peterson: The Friends Speak" (Premiere Sunday, January 9, 2022 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): Scott Peterson met Laci while frequenting a local diner and it was love at first sight. But their storybook love quickly wilted behind the scenes with Scott's multiple affairs none of which Laci knew about. With his pro-golf career ambitions gone Scott set about creating a new life with Laci in the suburbs of Modesto California and start their idyllic family story. But for him the dream was more of a nightmare and he wanted out. On Christmas Day in 2002 pregnant 27-year-old Laci disappeared from their home. The investigation into her disappearance turned into a major media spectacle and later spawned countless magazine cover stories, TV movies and books. A few months later the bodies of Laci and her unborn son were found washed ashore in an area Scott said he went fishing the day Laci went missing. All signs pointed to Scott who was sentenced to death and is now serving life in prison despite his continuous pleas of innocence. Now, in this two-hour special, six people involved with the story share their experiences including Laci's friends Debbie Wolski and Mika Anderson, Scott's college coach Hugh Gerhardt, reporter Julia Prodis Sulek who covered the story and Modesto Detective Jon Buehler and FBI Dive Team leader Bobby Chacon who both worked on the Peterson case.

"Ken & Barbie Killers: The Friends Speak" (Premiere Sunday, March 6, 2022 at 8pm ET/5pm PT): From the outside looking in the relationship between Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka was picture perfect. A beautiful young couple with their whole lives ahead of them. Behind closed doors was another story. Bernardo was a dangerous psychopath who had already committed a string of rapes. Homolka was sucked into the deranged world created by Bernardo and became so entrenched she offered up her own younger sister and other young women to be raped and murdered. Adding to the distressing nature of their crimes is their twisted obsession with filming and re-enacting them. These tapes were ultimately their downfall with Homolka getting off with a light punishment by giving authorities details on Bernardo. Now in The Friends Speak one of Homolka's childhood friends along with a Bernardo classmate and a man who shared a cell with him speak out about how the Homolka and Bernardo they knew stands in stark contrast to the horrific crimes they committed.