The Texas Yogurt Shop Exonerations

Summary

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48 Hours: The Texas Yogurt Shop Exonerations

Podcast: 48 Hours
Host: Erin Moriarty, CBS News
Episode Date: June 26, 2026

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Overview

This episode of “48 Hours” investigates the harrowing story of the 1991 Texas Yogurt Shop Murders in Austin, Texas, and the decades-long battle for justice that saw four men wrongfully accused and eventually exonerated. Featuring in-depth interviews with the widow and daughter of Maurice Pierce—one of the accused who died before his official exoneration—the episode probes the devastating personal toll of wrongful conviction, the failings of the justice system, and the urgent need for reform. It brings forward both the voices of the wrongly accused and their families, and explores recent developments, including a landmark $35 million settlement and ongoing advocacy for systemic change.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Background of the Case

• In 1991, four teenage girls—Eliza Thomas, Amy Ayers, Jennifer and Sarah Harbison—were brutally murdered in an Austin yogurt shop. Their bodies were found bound, gagged, shot, and the shop set ablaze.
• Four local teenage boys — Maurice Pierce, Forrest Welborn, Michael Scott, and Robert Springsteen — became the primary suspects. All but two were eventually charged.
• Decades later, the men were declared innocent after new DNA evidence linked another man, Robert Eugene Brashers, to the crime.

Notable Quote

“In the end, this is a story about eight victims. The four girls who were killed at the yogurt shop and the four boys who were wrongfully accused of killing them.”
— Erin Moriarty (02:59)

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2. The Initial Investigation and False Stereotyping

• Maurice Pierce was arrested at age 16, found with a .22 caliber gun similar to one used in the murders. However, no physical evidence tied him to the crime.
• Police used psychological pressure, fabrications, and misleading interrogation tactics, including telling Maurice his gun was the murder weapon.
• Kimberly Pierce (Maurice’s widow) recalled the trauma of police failing to notify parents and using coercive questioning on juveniles.

Notable Quote

“Detective Polanco told Maurice that the gun that he had was the murder weapon that killed the four girls at the yogurt shop.”
— Kimberly Pierce (07:33)

• The resulting narratives cast Maurice as a “mastermind”—a characterization his family found deeply false and cruel.

Notable Quote

“There’s this fabrication, this creation of a mastermind and a ringleader on the news and articles... It feels evil.”
— Marissa Pierce (09:37)

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3. Years of Legal Struggle and Trauma

A Family Under Siege

• The family describes media scrutiny and social ostracism as “guilt by association” (15:30), impacting employment and daily life even after Maurice’s release.
• Kim and Marissa recount the pain of explaining Maurice’s imprisonment to a child and being targeted by police even post-release.

Notable Quotes

“He had to shut off his feelings. You don’t just come out and your feelings turn on again. He was just a much harder, different person when he came out.”
— Kimberly Pierce (17:00)

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4. Confessions, Recantations, and Prison Terms

• The case was revived in 1999; Michael Scott and Robert Springsteen gave coerced confessions after intense, manipulative interrogations, later recanted.
• Only Scott and Springsteen went to trial, while Maurice spent over three years in jail without ever being convicted, and the “mastermind” narrative persisted.

Notable Quote

“When there is no evidence and there’s, you know, that you’re innocent, you just...think that it’s all a huge mistake, misunderstanding back then.”
— Kimberly Pierce (14:49)

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5. The Death of Maurice Pierce

• In 2010, Maurice died during an encounter with Austin police, shot after a minor traffic infraction escalated.
• Marissa was on the phone with her father in his last moments.

Memorable, Emotional Moment

“In those last moments, he had just said, ‘I’m sorry. I don’t think you’re going to see me again. And I love you.’”
— Marissa Pierce (25:53)

• Kim and Marissa remain skeptical of the police account of Maurice’s death, feeling it was the continuation of decades of targeting and injustice.

Notable Quote

“They’ve lied so much over the past 30 years in regards to the yogurt shop case. I certainly don’t believe them about the night that Maurice was shot. So in my mind, they murdered him.”
— Kimberly Pierce (27:41)

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6. Exoneration and Settlement

• In 2025, DNA evidence definitively cleared all four men when it matched Robert Eugene Brashers.
• The city of Austin reached a $35 million settlement to be divided among the exonerated; the Pierce family will receive $10 million.
• The need for meaningful justice and reform outweighs the monetary restitution for the family.

Notable Quotes

“It’s blood money for us. He died for this money...It’s about the reform and the changes that need to happen, not only in Austin, but apparently across the country.”
— Kimberly Pierce (02:45)

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7. Systemic Reform and Advocacy

• The Pierces now campaign for reforms:
  • Mandatory child advocates for juvenile suspects
  • Full recording of all police interrogations
  • Prohibition of police lying to juveniles
  • Comprehensive review of cases led by key detectives implicated in misconduct
• They urge the media to question official narratives more rigorously and to avoid perpetuating harmful stereotypes.

Notable Quotes

“If you’re getting a confession that way, that’s problematic. That’s clearly coerced. And then we also want all of Paul Johnson’s cases reviewed.”
— Kimberly Pierce (41:43)

“Everyone should be questioned.”
— Marissa Pierce (43:03)

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8. The Human Cost and Legacy

• The episode closes by honoring Maurice Pierce not as a suspect, but as a loving father, husband, and gentle soul whose life and legacy are defined by love, not by accusations.

Memorable Closing

“He was our home and our safe space and our protection. But he was also love. Just so much love.”
— Marissa Pierce (45:13)

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Important Timestamps

• 01:09 – Marissa Pierce introduces the “innocent until proven guilty” theme
• 02:29 – New evidence ties Robert Eugene Brashers to the crime
• 09:37 – Marissa Pierce on the “evil” of false narratives
• 12:32 – Marissa recalls the trauma of her father’s arrest as a child
• 17:00 – Kimberly describes Maurice’s changed demeanor post-incarceration
• 23:43 – Maurice’s final moments recounted by his daughter
• 25:53 – Marissa shares Maurice’s last words
• 29:18 – Police finally connect DNA to Brashers; family informed via news
• 38:23 – Marissa and Erin Moriarty reflect on the exoneration hearing
• 40:06 – Financial settlement discussed
• 41:08 – Reform demands outlined
• 44:34 – Family tributes to Maurice Pierce

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Notable Quotes

• “It was never about the money for us. It’s about the reform.” — Kimberly Pierce (02:45)
• “There’s...a narrative that was so completely false. I’m using your words. It feels evil.” — Erin Moriarty; Marissa Pierce (09:37)
• “They ruined four boys’ lives.” — Kimberly Pierce (36:02)
• “He was our home and our safe space and our protection.... But he was also love.” — Marissa Pierce (45:13)

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Summary Table of Key Moments

| Timestamp | Segment/Quote | Speaker(s) | Details | |-----------|--------------------|----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------| | 01:09 | “innocent until...”| Marissa Pierce | Opening on wrongful presumption of guilt | | 02:29 | DNA revelation | Kimberly Pierce | Brashers identified; settlement announced | | 09:37 | Narrative as “evil”| Marissa Pierce | Damage of media/police narrative | | 12:32 | Arrest trauma | Marissa, Kimberly | Recalling arrest, family trauma | | 17:00 | Incarceration effect| Kimberly Pierce | Emotional cost of prison on Maurice | | 23:43 | Maurice’s death | Marissa,Kimberly | Emotional recounting of incident, last words (25:53) | | 29:18 | Exoneration moment | Both | Found out Brashers DNA match via news, not DA/police | | 41:08 | Reforms outlined | Kimberly, Marissa | Calls for interrogation & investigative reform | | 45:13 | Remembering Maurice| Kimberly, Marissa | Family tribute, desire for public understanding |

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Conclusion

This “48 Hours” episode lays bare not just the failings of a justice system, but the extraordinary endurance of a family fighting for truth, dignity, and change. Through intimate testimony and unflinching analysis, it reminds us that the repercussions of wrongful convictions reverberate for generations, and that justice demands ongoing vigilance, accountability, and compassion.

Transcript

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[Erin Moriarty]

Par les tu francais hablage espanol, parle italiano.

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[Marissa Pierce]

The phrase most often associated with justice, the principle meant to anchor the system is innocent until proven guilty. But for my father and three of his peers, that principle did not exist.

[Erin Moriarty]

That's Marissa Pierce speaking about her late father, Maurice Pierce. Pierce was one of four men originally suspected in the 1991 murders of four teenage girls, Eliza Thomas, Amy Ayers and sisters Jennifer and Sarah Harbison. They were at a I Can't believe It's Yogurt shop in Austin, Texas. What did you see when you first walked into the yogurt shop?

[Commercial Narrator]

Just wholesale carnage.

[Erin Moriarty]

Sergeant Jones was looking at the badly burned bodies of four teenage girls who had been bound and gagged and shot in the head. The yogurt shop had been set on fire to cover the killer's tracks. The case has for years become known as the yogurt shop murders. Nearly 35 years later, all four men were declared innocent and exonerated after the Austin Police Department tied another man to the crimes.

[Kimberly Pierce]

We now have evidence linking a specific individual to this case, Robert Eugene Brashers.

[Erin Moriarty]

And now the city of Austin has made an offer of $35 million to be split amongst the wrongfully accused men, including the family of Maurice Pierce, who died before this settlement was reached.

[Kimberly Pierce]

It's blood money for us. He died for this money. So really, it was never about the money for us. It's about the reform and the changes that need to happen, not only in Austin, but apparently across the country.

[Erin Moriarty]

In the end, this is a story about eight victims. The four girls who were killed at the yogurt shop and the four boys who were wrongfully accused of killing them. What I think we need to remember is that over all these years, as terrible as it was for Sarah, Jennifer, Amy and Eliza's families, the four boys and their families were hounded and treated as pariahs. I'm 48 Hours correspondent Erin Moriarty, and this is case by case. I've been reporting on this case since almost the beginning and nearly my entire career at CBS News. The signs of pain and outrage are everywhere around Austin. So the police have formed an elite unit. Whose only mission is to catch whoever killed those girls. The gunshot wounds show that actually two different kinds of guns have been used, a.380 and a.22. Back then, one of the early suspects was Maurice Pierce, who was 16 years old at the time. Here's a clip from one of our 48 hours episodes on the case. You'll also hear from the first lead detective, John Jones. He was arrested eight days after the murders at a mall near the yogurt shop carrying a.22 caliber gun, the type used in the murders.

[Commercial Narrator]

The.22s were unmatchable.

[Erin Moriarty]

So you can't say it wasn't his gun. No, but there was no way to

[Commercial Narrator]

prove to prove that it was his gun. He gave a statement.

[Erin Moriarty]

Jones says Maurice Pierce claimed that he was driving a getaway car and that three acquaintances, Forrest Welborn, Michael Scott and Robert Springsteen, were involved in the murders. But Pierce's story began to fall apart.

[Commercial Narrator]

It started to crater when we wired him up to go talk to Forrest. And we were listening in on the wire. And it was pretty obvious Forrest didn't know what Maurice was talking about.

[Erin Moriarty]

And when Welborn Scott and Springsteen were brought in for questioning, they too, denied any involvement. And with me today to discuss this case and the lasting impact on the wrongfully accused and their families is Maurice Pierce's widow, Kimberly Pierce, and their daughter, Marissa Pierce. I want to thank both of you for being here today. What is the first thing that comes to mind when you, you know, you have to talk about this

[Marissa Pierce]

suffering?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Just how it got.

[Erin Moriarty]

It was so unreal in 1991. It seems like such a long time ago. Let's start at the beginning. I mean, what did you think, Kimberly? I mean, I know that everybody In Austin had heard about this terrible, terrible murder of four young girls. And all of a sudden, your boyfriend is pulled in and questioned about this case. Was that scary?

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, it was scary at the time. It was very scary for him. I didn't see him until he got released. So I know when I saw him, he had, you know, bit all of his nails. His lips were all, you know, bleeding. Cause he bit his lips and just very nervous reactions. I mean, I know initially his mom and dad didn't know where he was because they didn't notify his parents. So they didn't. They basically, you know, woke up and he wasn't home. And so they're calling, you know, like any other parent. We're calling the hospitals.

[Erin Moriarty]

Kimberly, how did he describe the questioning?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Um, he was just ready to get out of there. I mean, that's really. He was just. He was ready to go. He's like, I'm just glad it's over. And he didn't have to tell me anything. Cause I was with him that night. So I never questioned him. As far as you know, there wasn't a conversation like, did you do it? Because I was with him, and I knew he didn't do it.

[Erin Moriarty]

How did Maurice end up pointing the finger at his best friend Forrest? How did that come about? Why did they then wire Maurice and have him go in and talk to Forrest?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Because Detective Polanco told Maurice that the gun that he had was the murder weapon that killed the four girls at the yogurt shop.

[Erin Moriarty]

Kimberly, what did you think when you

[Kimberly Pierce]

heard that they'd already went down a rabbit hole with me and my questioning? That I already knew that they were lying. So I didn't believe anything that they said. They were telling me he was in a cult. Him and Forrest were in a cult, like with animal sacrifices. Then that didn't work. That's when they tried to say that he was at the yogurt shop visiting one of the girls, trying to make me jealous. And I was like, they're lying.

[Erin Moriarty]

You know, that they later on said Maurice confessed to being part of that. That wasn't true, was it?

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, he never confessed. He just. When they said that was the murder weapon, he basically said, I didn't have it for this chunk of time. So I don't think he said Forrest did it. But he's like somebody that was with Forrest or Forrest, if he had, you know, gave the gun to somebody else at the mall or something. But he didn't have it at that time.

[Erin Moriarty]

So if I'm understanding you. This is very helpful. So it wasn't that Maurice pointed the finger at Forrest. He's saying, all right, if you're telling me the truth, that this gun was involved in the murder? Well, I didn't have it at this time. My friend Forrest did. So that's then why they put a wire on Maurice and had him go talk to Forrest. I found it really interesting, Marissa, that at the exoneration hearing, you talked about that, and you said that in that room, there was no evidence, only a detective and a narrative, a narrative that was so completely false. I'm using your words. It feels evil. What do you mean by that?

[Marissa Pierce]

Well, you know, there's the person that raised me, the person that I know, the person that loved me and taught me all of life lessons. And then there's this. This fabrication, this creation of a. Of a mastermind and a ringleader on the news and articles. And so that's the narrative that I was referencing.

[Erin Moriarty]

That detective doing the questioning of Maurice for hours was. Was Hector Polanco. Lead detective John Jones took a statement after that, but he had doubts and told me when I started that it was clear that Forrest Welborne knew nothing and there was nothing to connect Maurice Pierce. None of the four guys were charged. And so did you feel that it was over at that point?

[Kimberly Pierce]

We did.

[Erin Moriarty]

So there's a period of time, that's when Marissa was. Was born and Marissa's growing up. But then, almost eight years later, in 1999, a new investigation and interrogations pushed two of the four men, Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott, to seemingly confess. Michael Scott's confession came first. He was questioned over four days. Come on, Michael, you're doing good. Tell us. Let's do this today.

[Commercial Narrator]

Let's do it.

[Erin Moriarty]

Same girl.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I remember one girl screaming, terrified.

[Erin Moriarty]

Scott told investigators that he and the others only intended a simple robbery. He said they cased the yogurt shop earlier that day. And then after dark, he said, they came back armed with two guns. I hear the gun go off.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I only pulled the trigger once.

[Erin Moriarty]

I hear another gun go off. Investigators claim that some Springsteen later corroborated much of what Scott said. How you doing? Is that correct? But after intense questioning, he went further. You know, Howard, raise your arm. You didn't say it. Springsteen told them he shot one girl and raped her. Both men later recanted those confessions, saying that they were coerced. But Springsteen, Scott, along with Maurice Pierce and Forrest Welborn, were arrested. How did you find that out? When did you find out that Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott had suddenly confessed after all those years and implicated Maurice.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, basically we were figuring it out when he got picked up on October 6th of 1999.

[Erin Moriarty]

And Marissa, do you remember, how old were you? What was that like?

[Marissa Pierce]

I was seven.

[Commercial Narrator]

And

[Marissa Pierce]

it was intense. It was devastating. It was confusing. It was a lot of things for a seven year old to have to try to grasp. I think my mom and dad tried really hard to shield me. I was seven. It was a lot, though.

[Erin Moriarty]

How did you explain it to Marissa, Kimberly? I mean, all of a sudden her dad that she's known for seven years is suddenly in jail.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I didn't tell her why he was in jail. I just told her he was in jail. I mean, at first. So that day they came really early before work. I mean, it was a whole SWAT team and. But I heard all the commotion, like the dogs were barking, and I went out. I was still in my nightgown. And they pointed all their guns at me, right? Because I'm coming out of the house, they have him hogtied on the ground.

[Erin Moriarty]

Did you even know what it was about yet? Did you know what was happening?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Oh, I knew what it was about, yes, because they had talked to him not too long before he got arrested. But, yeah, it was just. I sent her to school because I didn't, you know, you're in shock and you're like, I don't know exactly what I'm going to do. And then the principal called me because the news was there at her school. And so then I figured out, well, I can't send her to school. So, yeah, then everything just started happening. I had to quit my job. We moved. I wanted to be, I don't know, somewhere where I felt like it would be less known. I didn't want her to be messed with at school. I didn't work that whole first year because I was trying to be there for Maurice. I don't think we ever thought it was gonna last that long. When there is no evidence and there's, you know, that you're innocent, you just. I don't know, you just think that it's all a huge mistake, misunderstanding back then.

[Erin Moriarty]

I interviewed Forrest Welborn and he clearly did not seem to know anything. Were you there that night? No. Were you there as a lookout? No. Manset, you had nothing to do with this? Nothing at all at the time. I did a very long interview with him. And the DA at the time, Ronnie Earle, tried to get ahold of that interview because he wanted to know if There was anything incriminating in there. I mean, how difficult was that for the two of you when these cases got so much attention?

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, it's guilt by association. I feel like the way that you get treated by the media and the families was you might as well have been the murderer yourself.

[Erin Moriarty]

Maurice never went on trial. He never went on trial. The only two who went on trial were Michael Scott and Robert Springsteen because they were the only ones who had, quote, unquote, confessed. There was no other evidence. And yet Maurice spent more than three years in prison, is that correct?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Yes.

[Erin Moriarty]

Michael Scott and Robert Springsteen were both convicted. Scott was given life in prison. Robert Springsteen was put on death row in 2003. Then Maurice is finally released, and he's released, according to the DA who's still DA at that point, Ronnie Earle. And he says there isn't enough evidence to, quote, convict him right now. So it wasn't really over even though he's released, was it?

[Kimberly Pierce]

No, it wasn't over. They continue to harass him. Harass me. There was definitely times when I'm. He felt like he was clearly being followed, so.

[Erin Moriarty]

By police officers.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Right.

[Erin Moriarty]

What. What kind of toll did that take on Maurice?

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, being in jail took the hardest toll on him. In order to survive in there and to be locked up for 23 hours a day, he had to somehow shut off his feelings. And so it's hard. You don't just come out and you're a free man and your feelings turn on again. He was just a much harder, different person when he came out.

[Erin Moriarty]

And I want to make it clear that they. Although he was in jail for over three years, there was no physical evidence that tied him to the murder. Is that correct? And no statement that tied him to the murder?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Correct.

[Erin Moriarty]

And yet you believe he was targeted by police when he was released?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Absolutely.

[Erin Moriarty]

Foreign.

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[Erin Moriarty]

So now we go to 2006, 2007. I'm just going through the history here. And the convictions of Michael Scott and Robert Springsteen are overturned. It's on constitutional basis. The Sixth Amendment allows a defendant to be able to confront an accuser. But here you had these two, quote unquote confessions that were used against these guys, but they were not allowed to question each other. So they are released, and at that time, there's a new DA and she thinks, okay, I'm going to retry these guys, but I'm going to make sure I have more evidence. So I'm going to retest that DNA, that partial male DNA profile that by then we know exists but had never been able to be tied to anyone. And all of a sudden she tests it. In fact, it shows not only were those two guys excluded by that DNA, but so was Maurice and Forrest, all four guys. Did that make Maurice's life any better?

[Kimberly Pierce]

No. I mean, that's why perception is reality. He was still perceived to be a murderer, a mastermind, guilty, and again, us by association. So, you know, I didn't get jobs because he was my husband. So it's, you know, been very difficult for all of us for a long, long time.

[Erin Moriarty]

Kimberly, how did you stay? I know. I mean, I know you love Maurice, but that had to be hard.

[Marissa Pierce]

How do you not stay? Yeah.

[Erin Moriarty]

Tell me more.

[Kimberly Pierce]

We were together since we were 13 and 14. I think we grew up together. We made mistakes together. We had her young together. You know, he was my best friend. So it's hard that he's gone. It's hard to live with what they did to him.

[Erin Moriarty]

Well, let's talk about that. That, I think, is what I think I've been putting off going to in 2010. Do you need something at all? Marissa, we can stop.

[Marissa Pierce]

Just tissue, please.

[Erin Moriarty]

Of course. Of course.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Thank you.

[Erin Moriarty]

I mean, it makes me a little teary right now. What happened in 2010?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Maurice went through a stop sign. He did a rolling stop, a California stop, whatever you want to call it. He parked his car at his sister's house, got out, went into the house, and then they chased him. So he, you know, went through her house and went through the backyard and obviously started jumping fences and running, evading and.

[Erin Moriarty]

Well, can I tell you. Let me read to you what the police say. I want you to tell me what's accurate, what's not here. So this is how the Austin Police Department described what happened on that day in 2010. In December 2010, Maurice was stopped for traffic and fled on foot. APD officer Frank Wilson caught Pierce, and the two struggled. Pierce removed Officer Wilson's knife from his belt and then stabbed him in the neck. Officer Wilson shot and killed Pierce. Officer Wilson survived his injuries. Marissa, is that how you would describe what happened?

[Marissa Pierce]

I mean, I guess I don't know if my dad wanted to harm this officer, Frank Wilson.

[Erin Moriarty]

He.

[Marissa Pierce]

My dad was a, you know, a capable man. He. If he wanted to, he could have, and he didn't want to. He was just trying to run. You know, his mind went into survival. That was it. He just wanted to get away, and naturally. So I wish people, you know, could understand that. I know that my father was not trying to harm that officer.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Marissa was on the phone with him when he died.

[Erin Moriarty]

Oh, my God. Tell me about it. Marissa.

[Marissa Pierce]

I was on the phone. I was on the phone when it happened. And that's how I knew that he just wanted to get away because he had told me, like, could hear it in his voice, the fear that was taking over. He said, they're after me. They're after me. And I heard him put his car in park. I heard him open the door. I heard him run. And then. And then he let me go. He hung up. And I believe. I believe that he hung up when he knew that this officer was on him. So that way, like I said, he's always. He's always found a way to shield me. And I think that was intentional. And he let me go. But it was only moments later that he called me back. And. At the. At the time, he whispered very quietly to me. And in my head, I believed that he was hiding, you know, And I had just promised him, like, we're gonna figure it out. It's okay. You're fine. You're safe. I love you. We're gonna find you. But he was whispering because at that point, he was taking his last breaths. And in those last moments, he had just said, I'm sorry. I don't think you're going to see me again. And I love you.

[Erin Moriarty]

How did you find out, Kimberly?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Marissa. Marissa came to my house. It's, you know, clock in the morning. Yeah. And she's like, daddy, Daddy is gone.

[Marissa Pierce]

And.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Yeah, I just. I don't know. I. I didn't know how to, like. Is it real? We're not right there. We can't see it, but it sounded pretty real. I just felt like they. They finally got him. It was hard to hear that an Austin police officer shot him. I was angry. I was pissed off.

[Marissa Pierce]

You.

[Erin Moriarty]

You know, the Austin Police Department say that the officer was. It was a matter of defending his life, that he killed him in self defense. But you say it was murder. Why do you say that?

[Kimberly Pierce]

They've lied so much over the past 30 years in regards to the yogurt shop case. I certainly don't believe them about the night that Maurice was shot. So in my mind, they murdered him. And that's how I will always remember it. Personally, I feel like the timing of it was, you know, Rob and Mike get released in 2009. APD is mad that they don't have anybody in custody to blame. They're getting pressure still from everyone to solve the case. And I think they were going to get Maurice no matter what and make him pay for it, because I don't see how. He was shot over rolling through a stop sign. I just don't see it. That's how I feel. I don't think Maurice found his knife and stabbed him in the neck.

[Erin Moriarty]

So you still have.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I don't see it.

[Erin Moriarty]

You have questions about that night. You definitely have some questions left. And then you're talking about. So this was December 2010, and then it takes years, and we're talking about September 2025. The Austin Police Department identified a completely different man, Robert Eugene Brashears, as the man responsible for the murders of Amy, Eliza, Jennifer and Sarah.

[Kimberly Pierce]

The only. The only physical evidence located at that scene has been matched to him. Brashears died by suicide in 1999 after a standoff with police in Missouri. And his DNA has since been. And before this connection, he has been connected to murders and rapes across the country.

[Erin Moriarty]

How did you find out? Did you find out when we did? Or did at least the DA's office give you a call a Heads up.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Nobody called me. My sister in law called me. Maurice's sister called me. She saw it on the news and she called me. It just all seems surreal. Like until you start seeing stuff on the news and start googling it, looking it up yourself. You're like, is it real? And it was. And then I contemplated coming to the press conference, but I felt like,

[Marissa Pierce]

you

[Kimberly Pierce]

know, I wanted to allow the victims families to have their time. So I didn't come me. Marissa came to my house and we watched it together.

[Erin Moriarty]

Obviously this announcement was huge to the families of the girls. I mean, you know, so I want you to hear a little bit of what Barbara, Sarah and Jennifer's mom had to say about finding out that after almost 35 years, the case had finally been solved. Here's a little bit from her. It has been so long and all we ever wanted for this case was the truth. We never wanted anyone to go to jail or be charged with anything that they did not do. Vengeance was never it. It was always the truth. I was there at that press conference and we asked as reporters, is there any connection to this guy and the four guys that have been always suspected of killing the girls? And we were told no. Is there going to be an apology to the men who had been accused? And they said, well, when we do more investigation, if we were wrong, we'll apologize. I'm paraphrasing, but that's what was said. Tell me what you were feeling at that moment.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, that's how they always treated us. So it wasn't any different. I was just ready to move on to the next steps of. I mean, that's when Marissa went into action and started, you know, cold calling attorneys, you know, who will help us officially clear his name even though he's dead because it means something.

[Marissa Pierce]

Why have I asked my H Vac

[Erin Moriarty]

guy I found on angie.com to change my grandpa's trachea tube? Because I was so amazed by how quickly he replaced our air ducts.

[Commercial Narrator]

I knew I could trust him to

[Kimberly Pierce]

change Pop Pop's tube while I was on vacation.

[Commercial Narrator]

Make it quick, young man.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Aw.

[Erin Moriarty]

See, Pop Pop trusts you.

[Commercial Narrator]

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[Marissa Pierce]

are you really buying a car online on Autotrader right now?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Really?

[Erin Moriarty]

At a playground? Yeah.

[Commercial Narrator]

Really?

[Erin Moriarty]

Look at these listings from dealers.

[Marissa Pierce]

Wow, your search can really get that specific.

[Commercial Narrator]

Really?

[Marissa Pierce]

And you just Put in your info and boom.

[Erin Moriarty]

Car's in your budget. Mom needs a second. Honey, you can really have it delivered.

[Commercial Narrator]

Really?

[Erin Moriarty]

Or I can pick it up at the dealership. One sec, sweetie. Mommy's buying a car. Uh, I think your kid is walking up the slide, Kyle.

[Commercial Narrator]

Again?

Really?

[Erin Moriarty]

Auto trader. Buy your car online.

[Commercial Narrator]

Really?

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[Erin Moriarty]

I think one of the hardest things to hear in that press conference and if you were watching on television, you probably remember this too, was to find out that there was a missed opportunity. Just two days after the girls were killed, the real killer, Brashears is stopped at a checkpoint. It was near El Paso and he had a.380 gun with him. It fit the description of the gun that had been used by the murders. There was a.22 and a.380 that was used in the murders. They know he's in a stolen car. They know he has a.380.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Yeah, that was hard to hear. The judicial system failed us in multiple states. Florida let him go early for who knows why. He should have still been in jail when he committed the yogurt shot murders. Even in 99, he shot himself with the same gun. I was like, how does he get the gun back? Like if maybe Niban would have been tested then, like maybe they would have picked it up and figured it out. Like I would like to know how, when. When was the last time, you know,

[Erin Moriarty]

I think I should make it clear that NIBIN is that data center that keeps track of ballistics and weapons used in crimes.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Yeah, it felt like a series of unfortunate events that led to the arrest and murder of Maurice is what it felt like. There were so many things that had to play out and went wrong that resulted in his death.

[Erin Moriarty]

Is it hard that he hard for you to accept that he doesn't know? His family knows. Everyone in Austin knows and Maurice did not live long enough to find out.

[Kimberly Pierce]

It's hard that they knew the truth and they just didn't care. And that it didn't matter that they were ruining four boys lives. I feel that today, like nobody really cares about the four boys or the harm that it caused them or our families. And it's still focused more on the serial killer and the victims families than the four boys.

[Erin Moriarty]

You don't think today that anybody is interested or cares about what you all went through in all these things?

[Marissa Pierce]

Not as much. Yeah.

[Erin Moriarty]

You began working with the Innocence Project of Texas. Marissa, it really was important for your father to be cleared and exonerated. That did matter. Was there any question that was going to happen? I mean, was it. I mean, because we know that that hearing was held, but was there any question before it was held whether in fact there would be an apology and there would be an exoneration of all four men, including your dad?

[Marissa Pierce]

Not in my mind. It came to pass and we were able to be there and experience it and see it for him.

[Erin Moriarty]

I was not there. I watched it afterwards. And when Mike Scott, who was the only one of the four who actually testified at that hearing, took the stand, I didn't even recognize him. He looked like an old guy. In my mind, I was still seeing the Michael Scott even from 1999. And when he went on trial. And it really showed me how much time had gone by and the weight that had been on these individuals. Did that help to finally have this hearing where at least the state of Texas and most of America could see that your father's name had been cleared?

[Marissa Pierce]

I was definitely grateful. I was happy to see it myself. But in my mind it's a little too late. There's. He's not here to experience the things that he should have been able to do, to see that the people finally hear him and are listening to him and know his innocence. Because we've known all along, families known all along.

[Erin Moriarty]

What about you, Kimberly?

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, I think it was a little cathartic to go through it. Right. Statement. Say what I wanted to say. I honestly thought it would never be solved in my lifetime. So it was kind of a relief to finally just hear it all. I mean, the DA did apologize, you know, publicly that that day was a good day for us. We're hoping that out of it, all of the things that went wrong will be brought to light and some serious reform will come out of it.

[Erin Moriarty]

All right. And that's what I want to get to because I know that is really the reason why you're sitting down with us. I know that you really want to talk about the changes. So the city of Austin has agreed to pay all four men, and in your case, the family of Maurice Pierce, $35 million. And it's been reported that your family will get $10 million. Is that correct?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Yes.

[Erin Moriarty]

I think some people will look and say, that's a lot of money to people. Other people will say it's not enough. What do you think?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Oh, it's definitely not enough for his life. It was very hard to try to say that that was enough.

[Erin Moriarty]

So tell me about some of the changes you would really like to be. You'd really like to see.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I would like a child advocate to be appointed to any juvenile being questioned as a witness or a suspect, especially in a murder case. There should have been. I mean, they didn't. They violated our rights. They didn't call our parents. They talked to us without them. Obviously, that shouldn't happen. Paul Johnson admits that, you know, the entire interrogation was not taped. Right. Only excerpts or parts of it. That should not be allowed to happen. That should be.

[Erin Moriarty]

You want the whole thing taped and Paul Johnson became the lead detective.

[Marissa Pierce]

Correct.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I don't need excerpts. I don't need, you know, you feeding him information after you've shown him, you know, the graphic photos of the girls, you know, dead when he was 16 years old. Right. Like that. That should not be what's happening.

[Erin Moriarty]

So, in fact, Maurice, early on, even at age 16, they're showing him pictures of the victims to try to get him to. To confess.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Yes.

[Erin Moriarty]

And you want to see that change?

[Kimberly Pierce]

Well, they should not be allowed to lie to. I mean, anyone, but especially juveniles. You know, Maurice thought. They're not allowed to lie to you. They're the cops. They're telling the truth. Like, he honestly thought it was the truth. He had no doubt in his mind they were telling him the truth. They're the law. Even when. Right. They were questioning Mike. Like, when that. The one detective puts the gun to the back of his head, you know, like you did it. Like, that's. That should not be allowed ever. Right. If you're getting a confession that way, that's problematic. That's clearly coerced. And then we also want all of Paul Johnson's cases reviewed.

[Erin Moriarty]

And has the city of Austin or have. Has the apd, The Austin police department, promised to end some of these practices, or are you working towards that?

[Kimberly Pierce]

We're working towards that. There were seven. Seven different reform requests.

[Erin Moriarty]

I know this is not part of this settlement with the city, but I have to ask, as a reporter, is there some changes you'd like to see in what. What we do what I do really dig in.

[Marissa Pierce]

Maybe, you know, like I said, the narrative in the beginning, I felt like not a lot of reporters were really, truly questioning the evidence and the alibi and the how are we here? You know, just ask some of those out of the box questions. So even maybe you as a reporter, when a detective tells you, this is who we think it is, you know, maybe it holds validity because they're a detective. Right. But that's not the case. And I think that's important for us to all realize is that everyone should be questioned.

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, I think now, you know, in 2026, people are questioning authorities more than we did in the 90s. I think, you know, there is so much more on caught on camera. Right. So it's harder for them to get away with it and hide what they're doing behind closed doors.

[Erin Moriarty]

I have to say, Kimberly, I also think that if this had happened today, there would have been cameras in the yogurt shop and, you know, cameras outside, and this might not have happened. But. But what your family went through just should not happen to anyone. I feel like I want to leave it with the two of you. Describing how do you want us to see Maurice Pierce?

[Kimberly Pierce]

I mean, he was a husband, a father, a brother, an uncle. He loved to work on any type of car or motorcycle. He liked old muscle cars. Um, you know, he just would go out of his way to help somebody if, you know, he thought something was wrong.

[Erin Moriarty]

You stood by him all those years. What did you love about him?

[Kimberly Pierce]

I don't know if I could point. I mean, I just. He was. He was mine, I guess I loved the way that he loved me.

[Marissa Pierce]

He was. He was home. He was like a, you know, kind of like that anchor. And he was tender and he was kind. He was always just so gentle. He was our home and our safe space and our protection. But he was also love. Just so much love. And that's what gives me the courage to sit here, is I know that life was heavy for him, but he still got up every morning and he still tried every day.

[Erin Moriarty]

I want to thank both of you for talking about this, and I want to know what happens. And I really appreciate that the two of you spoke with us today.

[Marissa Pierce]

Thank you.

[Erin Moriarty]

We'll be back next week with another episode of Case by Case. Be sure to rate and review and let us know which cases you are following and you want us to follow. 48 Hours reached out to the Austin police department about the Pierces allegations of harassment. And they're questioned about Maurice Pierce's death in 2010. The police department said they had no additional comment.

[Commercial Narrator]

Now streaming on Paramount Plus, Beth and Rip are back in Dutton Ranch.

[Erin Moriarty]

This life here is going to work, isn't it?

[Kimberly Pierce]

We'll make it work.

[Commercial Narrator]

Starring Kelly Riley.

[Marissa Pierce]

Legacy is a beautiful thing, but only if it survives.

[Commercial Narrator]

Cole Hauser.

[Kimberly Pierce]

Let's go to work.

[Commercial Narrator]

Ed Harris family is the only thing worth fighting for. And Annette Benning.

[Erin Moriarty]

I can make this a lot harder

[Marissa Pierce]

for all y', all, and peace will have to wait.

[Commercial Narrator]

Dutton Ranch New series Now streaming on

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