WAS AN ATLANTA DETECTIVE’S INVESTIGATION INTO AN ALLEGED RAPE AND SHOOTING DEATH CASE INFLUENCED BY TV CAMERAS? “48 HOURS” INVESTIGATES IN “REALITY KILLS”
Saturday, June 30, 10:00 PM
(L-R) Victoria Rickman, Will Carter, Jr. and Summer Benton
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Did being on-camera for a true-crime television show influence the way an Atlanta detective investigated an alleged rape and shooting death? Erin Moriarty and 48 HOURS investigate what impact that TV show may have had on the search for clues in the death of a Marietta, Ga. man and the murder case against the woman who shot him dead, in an encore of “Reality Kills” to be broadcast Saturday, June 30 (10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.
It’s a case that raises questions about the investigative process when TV cameras are around, and a case that exposes deep flaws in a relationship that ended in the death of a young father, who overcame addiction to become a successful businessman. It’s an investigation that ultimately hinges on whether the shooting was done in self-defense or if it was premeditated murder.
In the early morning hours of Sept. 13, 2013, Victoria Rickman called 911 to report she had repeatedly shot her boyfriend, Will Carter, Jr. She said that he had raped her and she shot to stop the attack. When Atlanta Police Department Detective Summer Benton arrived on the scene, she had a camera crew for a true-crime TV series “Inside Homicide” in tow. Benton felt something wasn’t right, that maybe Rickman’s story wasn’t correct.
More than six hours later, Rickman was arrested and charged with murder. Prosecutors maintained that Rickman made up the rape to cover for shooting him. Her defense attorney, Amanda Clark Palmer, maintained that Benton made mistakes during the investigation and was guilty of a rush to judgment because she was being tailed by a TV crew. Benton denied that the cameras affected her investigation and says having cameras follow her was not her decision.
48 HOURS was there in the courtroom for the trial, when a jury decided Rickman’s fate and later when a judge decided her future.
48 HOURS: “Reality Kills” is produced by Paul LaRosa and Elena DiFiore. Stephen A. McCain and Michelle Feuer are the development producers. Linda Martin is the update producer. Ken Blum, Doreen Schechter and Gary Winter are the editors. Patti Aronofsky is the senior producer. Nancy Kramer is the executive story editor. Susan Zirinsky is the senior executive producer.
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