Accused

Summary

Podcast Episode Summary
Podcast: 48 Hours
Episode: Accused
Date: April 30, 2026
Host: CBS News / Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)

---

Overview

This gripping episode of “48 Hours” dives into the controversial conviction—and ultimate acquittal—of Sheila Bryan, a Georgia mother accused and tried twice for the 1996 murder of her 82-year-old mother, Freda Weeks. Through interviews with family, friends, investigators, and expert witnesses, the episode methodically explores the intricacies of the case, examining conflicting evidence, judicial errors, and the power of expert testimony. The episode is a meditation on justice, the role of science in the courtroom, and the emotional cost of the justice system’s fallibility.

---

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Sheila Bryan’s Background and the Tragedy (00:34-03:22)

• Sheila is depicted as a loving wife, mother, and devoted daughter, “typical American mom” living in Omega, Georgia.
• In 1996, after a drive with her mother, Freda Weeks, Sheila’s life changes overnight when Freda dies in a car fire.
• Sheila’s account: she lost control of the vehicle, which ended up at the bottom of an embankment. She tried to help her mother, but the car doors locked, and a fire broke out before help could arrive.
• Family and friends are steadfast in their support, denying any possibility of Sheila’s guilt.

2. Initial Investigation and Prosecution (03:39-07:15)

• Early investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation raised questions: suspicious accident, open fuel door, missing gas cap, but otherwise little physical evidence.
• State fire investigators declare the fire was “incendiary” (deliberately set).
• District Attorney David Miller’s theory: Sheila intentionally drove down the embankment and set the fire ([06:06]).
  • Quote: “It was an intentionally set incendiary fire.” — District Attorney David Miller [06:06]
• Despite no previous criminal history, Sheila is tried and convicted by a jury:
  • Quote: “The fact showed to me that the fire was set by her hand.” — Juror [06:59]
• Sheila receives a life sentence plus 20 years, plunging her family into crisis.

3. Family Torn Apart, but Unwavering Support (08:40-10:23)

• Emotional impact: Daughters, Carrie and Carla, reflect on losing both grandmother and mother (“It's been traumatic not being able to hold them” — Sheila Bryan [09:05]).
• The prosecution’s alleged motive (insurance) is later declared misleading by the Georgia Supreme Court, leading to Sheila’s temporary release on bond.

4. New Hope: Overturned Conviction and Second Trial (10:23-12:55)

• Supreme Court overturns conviction, finding flaws in the prosecution’s argument regarding motive.
• The state’s expert testimony on the fire’s cause, especially on the supposed use of accelerants, remains unchallenged until Sheila’s defense finds new experts.

5. The Power of Expert Testimony (“Junk Science” vs. Chemistry) (15:12-21:02)

• Gerald Hearst, PhD chemist, is introduced as Sheila’s hope to counteract the prosecution’s “junk science.” He conducts demonstrations:
  • Car interiors (plastic, foam) are highly flammable and can create intense fires and “irregular burn patterns,” even without accelerants.
  • Quote: “Plastic and foam in today's cars are chemical cousins of gasoline. Once ignited, nothing extra is needed for a car to burn intensely.” — Narrator [20:05]
• Hearst’s experiments show flaming plastic can drip onto carpet, mimicking signs previously attributed to arson, a pivotal revelation.
  • Quote: “If you can get a fire started, you can burn a whole car out without an accelerant.” — Gerald Hearst [21:02]
• Despite these findings, the atmosphere before the trial is tense—“Truth and justice don't always prevail at trial.” — Sheila’s Friend or Advocate [21:27]

6. Retrial: Competing Theories and Witnesses (22:30-33:07)

• Both sides present their respective fire experts:
  • Prosecutors (Newell/Dobbins) insist only a flammable liquid could explain the burn pattern.
  • Defense attacks credibility and posits the ignition switch as a plausible accidental cause. Chris Bloom (defense expert) and Hearst testify, calling out factory faults in certain Ford models.
• Hearst presents visual evidence that melted plastic and factory defects could explain the incriminating marks—a “break in the door seal” facilitated the pattern ([31:51-32:26]).
  • Quote: “Those two patterns there were not caused by an accelerant. Those were caused by flowing plastic. And there is no doubt in my mind about that.” — Gerald Hearst [32:52]
• Though Hearst can’t “definitely” prove the ignition switch caused the fire, he asserts it’s the “most probable cause” ([33:04]).

7. Waiting and the Verdict (34:32-36:16)

• The Bryan family prays for acquittal; Sheila worries most for her daughters’ emotional well-being.
• The jury deliberates for three hours and announces a verdict: Not guilty on all counts.
  • Memorable Moment: “When he said the first count, not guilty, it was just like the people in the courtroom sucked out the air because everyone gasped.” — Sheila’s Daughter [35:36]

8. Aftermath, Doubts, and Lessons (36:16-40:00)

• Jurors from the retrial: “They did not give us any evidence that she did do it. And we're supposed to convict her on their say so.” — Juror [36:20]
• Some from the first trial remain convinced of guilt; retrial jurors place more credibility in Hearst’s scientific explanation and question the prosecution’s expert’s ties to Ford.
• District Attorney Miller admits that with new evidence and context, Sheila may never have faced charges ([38:28]).
• Sheila reflects on the random, frightening nature of the justice system: “People need to realize, you know, just how easily this could have happened, even to them.” — Sheila Bryan [38:55]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• “You think it's ridiculous?” — Narrator [00:50], on the family’s disbelief
• “You think that because you're innocent, things won't go wrong. You're mistaken.” — Sheila Bryan [07:15]
• “Between him and God, we'll prove it.” — Sheila Bryan (about expert Gerald Hearst) [17:11]
• “Their experts were good, good at presenting their case, but technically I thought they were full of prunes.” — Sheila’s Friend or Advocate (on state fire experts) [16:50]
• “If you can get a fire started, you can burn a whole car out without an accelerant.” — Gerald Hearst [21:02]
• “She would have to have a can, whatever, go down that ditch bank... take a chance on, you know, it catching her and hope that nobody came down that road.” — Retrial Juror [36:29]
• “There’s an awful lot of randomness in our court system. It’s remarkable, it’s frightening.” — Sheila’s Friend or Advocate [38:07]

---

Episode Timeline Highlights

• Sheila's arrest and the original trial: [03:22–07:15]
• Life after conviction: [07:36–09:18]
• Supreme Court overturns conviction: [09:40–10:23]
• Return home & preparation for retrial: [10:23–15:12]
• Gerald Hearst’s experiment and theory: [18:09–21:24]
• Second trial opens: [22:35–27:32]
• Burn pattern and expert testimony showdown: [29:29–33:07]
• Jury reaches verdict: [35:02–36:16]
• Aftermath and reflections on justice: [38:07–40:00]

---

Takeaways

• The episode powerfully illustrates how wrongful convictions can arise from a combination of circumstantial evidence, expert testimony of questionable certainty, and jury persuasion.
• Modern forensic science—and the willingness to challenge established narratives—is vital to justice.
• The personal costs of criminal prosecution extend well beyond the defendant, scarring families and entire communities.
• Ultimately, the case demonstrates the unpredictability of the justice system and the fragile border between guilt, innocence, and reasonable doubt.

---

For listeners interested in more legal drama, forensic science, and the human stories that run through them, “48 Hours: Accused” is quintessential.

Transcript

[Sheila Bryan]

I sold my car in Carvana last night.

[Narrator]

Well, that's cool.

[Sheila Bryan]

No, you don't understand. It went perfectly. Real offer down to the penny. They're picking it up tomorrow. Nothing went wrong.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

So what's the problem?

[Sheila Bryan]

That is the problem. Nothing in my life goes as smoothly. I'm waiting for the catch.

[Friend or Acquaintance]

Maybe there's no catch.

[Sheila Bryan]

That's exactly what a catch would want me to think.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Wow.

[Narrator]

You need to relax.

[Sheila Bryan]

I need to knock on wood. Do we have wood? Is this table wood?

[Friend or Acquaintance]

I think it's laminate.

[Sheila Bryan]

Okay. Yeah, that's good. That's close enough.

[Narrator]

Car selling without a catch.

[Carvana Advertiser]

Sell your car today on Carvana.

[Sheila Bryan]

Pick up.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Fees may apply.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

Sheila is a loving wife and mother. She was also a devoted daughter.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

She loved mother.

[Family Member]

They had the best of relationship.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

So everyone was shocked when she was charged and convicted of an unthinkable crime. Murdering her own mother.

[Narrator]

You think it's ridiculous.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

Anybody who knows my mother knows she's not capable of anything like that.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

But the prosecution says the evidence proves it.

[District Attorney David Miller]

Sheila Bryan set that car on fire with her mama inside the car.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

Now Sheila may have one last chance to prove she is innocent.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I really believed that a woman had been convicted without any real evidence.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

This expert says it was an accident.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I found the real cause.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

Can he save her from life in prison?

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Between him and God, we'll prove it.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

Susan Spencer investigates.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Did you have anything to do with intentionally starting that fire?

[Sheila Bryan]

That was my mother.

[Susan Spencer (Investigator/Reporter)]

A 48 Hours mystery accused.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

My focus has always been my family. I enjoy doing stuff with my children and for my children and for my husband.

[Narrator]

Not long ago, Sheila Bryan was a typical American mom living with her husband in Omega, Georgia, happily raising her two daughters.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

I'm a mom and I'm proud to be a mom.

[Narrator]

But in 1996, her life began to unravel. First, she lost her 82 year old mother.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

You were close to her.

[Sheila Bryan]

She'd always been there.

[Narrator]

Then she says, to her total shock, she was charged with her mother's murder.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

This is my room on a Hall, Room 116 at Pulaski State Prison.

[Narrator]

Charged, tried and convicted.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

This is my bed.

[Narrator]

Sheila insists she is completely innocent.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

It's hard to comprehend that somebody would

[Sheila Bryan]

even suggest that I did that.

[Narrator]

And her family and friends find the charges impossible to even consider. We've known her since she was about 3 years old. To know Sheila is to love her.

[Family Member or Friend]

And she loved her mother.

[Family Member]

They had the best of relationship.

[Family Member or Friend]

She couldn't do what they accused her of doing.

[Narrator]

You think it's ridiculous?

[Family Member or Friend]

This Woman didn't kill her mother, but

[Narrator]

the state of Georgia says justice was served. About the only thing that everyone can agree on is that 82 year old Freda Weeks and her daughter Sheila went for a drive on a hot August day in 1996. And before that day was over, what was left of Sheila's burned out car was at the bottom of that embankment. And Freda Weeks was dead.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

We just went riding around for a little bit, you know, just reminiscing and which we've done that for years.

[Narrator]

Sheila, as she approached this bridge, I

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

don't know what happened.

[Narrator]

She momentarily became distracted. She lost control.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

All of a sudden I was just off the road.

[Narrator]

When her car finally settled at the bottom of the embankment, she says her mother was very still.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

She didn't respond to me and I was scared.

[Narrator]

And Sheila found she couldn't turn the car off.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

I'm trying to get the car off and I couldn't get the car. And I finally got it and I snatched the keys out and they dropped.

[Narrator]

She got out but couldn't get to her mother. The doors had somehow locked.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

And that's when I really panicked.

[Narrator]

She climbed the steep embankment, desperate for help. Then turning, says she saw a horrifying sight.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

I saw a trickle of smoke. And about that time the car come around the curve.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

So you're coming down this road, right?

[Family Member or Friend]

She was screaming, crying, shaking her head. She said that her mama was in the car.

[Narrator]

Danny Weeks jumped out of his car and, and sent his wife to call the fire department.

[Family Member or Friend]

So I went down there and seen the car. The smoke was like coming up over the front windshield.

[Narrator]

He ran to get a bucket of

[Family Member or Friend]

water and I just throwed the water over the top of the car.

[Narrator]

But by then the fire was raging.

[Family Member or Friend]

It didn't have no bearing on it.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

And where was Sheila during all this?

[Family Member or Friend]

Behind me, she was just shaking and crying.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

And it sounds like by the time you got here it was too late.

[Family Member or Friend]

I think it was.

[Minister or Funeral Officiant]

I performed the funeral service. We thought everything was just following order, you know, the family would go home and grieve.

[Narrator]

Sheila says she was completely unprepared for what happened next.

[Minister or Funeral Officiant]

Sheila told me they're going to exhume my mother's body.

[Family Member or Friend]

We were contacted about 10 days after the actual incident.

[Narrator]

Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent John Heinen was looking into the death.

[Family Member or Friend]

The accident was certainly suspicious.

[Narrator]

The medical examiner said Freda Weeks probably died of heart failure and possibly before the fire began. But Heinen says other circumstances surrounding the case were very peculiar.

[Family Member or Friend]

No damage to the vehicle no personal items in the car. The gas cap of the car was missing. The fuel door was open.

[Narrator]

Most incriminating of all though, was the report from the state fire investigators. Their conclusion, it was arson. Though fire destroys everything in its path, investigators say it leaves its own clues. By sifting through what remains of Sheila's car, they can determine how the fire burned, how it grew, and how it began.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

What did the fire investigators evidence actually show?

[District Attorney David Miller]

It was an intentionally said incendiary fire.

[Narrator]

District Attorney David Miller's theory of what happened that day was, was far different from Sheila's.

[District Attorney David Miller]

Sheila Bryan drove that car down the side of that embankment and set that car on fire with her mama inside the car.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

The whole situation was so ludicrous that at first it was just like, you know, you gotta be kidding. And then as it progressed, it become, these people are really serious.

[Narrator]

In 1998, two years after that fatal drive, Sheila Bryan, a homemaker who'd never been accused of any crime, stood trial for arson and murder. I would have loved for the woman to have been not guilty.

[Juror]

It's not something that we wanted to do.

[Narrator]

Sonja Willett, her husband Aaron, and Monica Funderburk all sat on the jury and all agreed.

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

That's a tremendous fire.

[Narrator]

This fire did not start itself.

[Juror]

The fact showed to me that the fire was set by her hand.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Did you think up to the last second that you would be found not guilty?

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Yes, I sure did.

[Narrator]

After eight hours of deliberation, the jury voted to convict.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

You think that you're because you're innocent, that things won't go wrong. You're mistaken.

[Narrator]

And Sheila Bryant was sentenced to life plus 20 years.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

1 min you're Sheila Bryan, normal mother, mother housewife. The next minute you're in prison for the rest of your life.

Yeah, he just went numb.

[Narrator]

Sheila's husband Carlos, a house painter, was suddenly left to raise their daughters on his own.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

I had resigned to the fact that our life together would be four or five hours once a week at the prison.

[Narrator]

But Sheila's friends never have given up.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

She's innocent.

[Family Member]

We will fight the case with all our strength, with all our heart and all our might. There's no doubt about it.

[Narrator]

And now, after nearly a year in prison, Sheila may get a second chance. When 48 Hours continues. 10 year old Carrie Bryan and her sister Carla, remember when they could visit their grandmother every day just by walking out the back door to her house?

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

Every day we used to take a walk up here and we had a little path where the grass had worn out because we'd walked it so much and we'd have little bitty tea parties with the little cups and the little saucers and little crumpets and things.

[Narrator]

But when 82 year old Freda Weeks died, the girls lost their grandmother and then they lost their mother, too.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

It has been traumatic at times to not be able to hold them.

[Narrator]

Sheila Bryan was sentenced to life in prison for murder for setting fire to her car with her mother inside.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Did you have anything to do with intentionally starting that fire?

[Sheila Bryan]

No, that was my mother. If you could see in the heart, who knows, that I could never do anything to harm her.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

And yet the state found that you did.

[Sheila Bryan]

The state was mistaken, badly mistaken.

[Narrator]

But now, after serving nearly a year in prison, Sheila has new hope. The Georgia supreme court has overturned her conviction. Why? Sheila's alleged motive. With broad strokes, prosecutors began painting Sheila Bryan as a woman who murdered her mother for her insurance money. The court said the state had misled the jury by suggesting that the liability insurance on the Bryan's car was somehow the motive, erroneously implying that Sheila Bryan had a lot to gain from her mother's death. So when her friends post bond, it's a happy day.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

We're here because Sheila's coming home from prison.

[Narrator]

Sheila is coming home.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

We're just ready for her to come home, have her back at the house

[Narrator]

with us, at least for a while.

[Sheila Bryan]

I'm expecting to go home and just hug my youngins and Carlos until my arms get tired.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Here comes my babies. I've learned to put all my trust in the lord. This has been the longest time that he's carried me. I think your richness was measured by

[Sheila Bryan]

the friends that you have. I feel pretty wealthy.

[Narrator]

Let's go home.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Okay.

[Narrator]

Home, Sheila. But for all the people who believe in Sheila's innocence, others believe that a murderer has just been set free. And district attorney David Miller is taking her to court again.

[District Attorney David Miller]

I couldn't sleep at night if we didn't retry it.

[Narrator]

Though it tossed out her conviction, the supreme court did not throw out the state's key evidence, testimony of its fire experts. The experts told the jury the fire was started with a highly flammable liquid, though two labs found no trace of it in all the materials they took from Sheila's car. The experts said definitely liquid was used. Their evidence, the telltale burn pattern it left behind, what we were shown showed

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

a definite flame pattern.

[Narrator]

The fire was hotter in certain areas than others. The jury found that very convincing.

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

It was like a straight line. It was like a trail.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

And there was no testimony that this could have been caused in any other way.

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

No other way.

[Juror]

You know, with all of the flame retardant materials that are in cars these days, you know, they're put there to keep a car from catching on fire and burning as quickly as it did.

[District Attorney David Miller]

If the facts and evidence as presented show that she intentionally killed her mama this way, then this 82 year old woman died a horrible death and she should be held responsible for it.

[Narrator]

But today, I keep growing foot. Sheila is trying to forget that a new trial looms.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

She's home

[Narrator]

for now. She's treasuring the present.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Most people just take every little thing for granted. Walking in the front door, stepping back

[Narrator]

into the lives of her daughters.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Being able to hold your child when you want to.

[Narrator]

And of Carlis, her husband of 28 years, catching up on what she missed.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Where's the place, y'? All by the big economy side.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

Yeah, she ain't through inspecting.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

I just know I missed a lot in their lives.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

She missed my first homecoming, Carla's 16th

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

birthday and Carrie's 10th birthday.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Those are big birthdays.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Oh, yeah.

[Sheila Bryan]

I'm sorry I missed it.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

It's okay.

[Sheila Bryan]

You're right.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Now what do you now understand they were going through?

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

They went through a lot of heartache and adjusting to not having a mother

[Sheila Bryan]

who had always been there.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

7:15. Where's Carrie? Right here. Come on.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

She always did everything with the girls

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

and for the girls.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Oh, help me.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Look.

[Narrator]

Help me. I'm falling.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

And a lot of things change when you're gone.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Was your sister trying to be your mother and your sister?

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

I was the closest thing she had.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

It's just a lot of adjustment, you know, to try to shake.

[Sheila Bryan]

Shake. Come on.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

Get your family back in like it was.

[Family Member or Friend]

Mama.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Carla. Whoa.

[Narrator]

Hold up right there.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

And now we're fixing to go through it all over again now that we have it.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

We try to use up all the time that we have together just in case.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Well, you know, one day you'll just be so thankful that your hair has so much body.

[Narrator]

You've been telling me that if Sheila loses in court again, she will be taken away from her family forever.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

It just overwhelms every now and then.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Hey, I'll slide over here.

[Narrator]

So her friends have stepped up their efforts to defend her. We've got to prepare her for the next round. We appreciate everybody being here, raising money. We'll start out, give you a treasure report of $5,636.71. Offering prayers. We're praying, Father, that the divine Will

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

of God will be accomplished here.

[Narrator]

Doing research, looking for any way to refute the incriminating expert testimony the new jury is bound to hear.

[Sheila Bryan]

We never doubted Sheila and we felt like we needed somebody who could show how this fire started.

[Narrator]

And remarkably, they did find someone.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Out of nowhere, all stars.

[Narrator]

Someone who might be the answer to their prayers.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I really believe that a woman had been convicted without any real evidence.

[Narrator]

That's next.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

How's Ms. Violin today?

[Narrator]

Sheila Bryan savors her newfound freedom.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

How are you today?

[Narrator]

Even at her part time job delivering meals to the elderly.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

You're out of tea.

[Narrator]

An unlikely job perhaps for someone once convicted of setting a car on fire with her 82 year old mother trapped inside.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

To me, that's the most horrendous thing that you could think of. I can't even comprehend it.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

Thank heavenly Father for this meal.

[Narrator]

Her family is grateful for the six months she's been home from prison.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

It's not easy being 15 and turning 16 and doing everything mom did.

[Narrator]

But the new trial is only days away.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

I'm a little nervous, but that's just to be expected.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

I just hate to see my kids go back through this again. This is not something a 10 year old needs.

[Narrator]

Sheila soon will face the same two witnesses who already have convinced one jury that she deliberately set the fire.

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

I think both of the fire inspectors were very convincing to me.

[Narrator]

But this time those experts will be challenged by Gerald Hearst, a scientist with a PhD in chemistry tracked down by Sheila's friend.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

The jurors were very impressed with the state's experts.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

The state's experts were good, good at presenting their case, but technically I thought they were full of prunes.

[Narrator]

Hearst says there is no reason to label this fire arson.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I really believed that a woman had been convicted without any real evidence.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

And that makes you mad?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

Yeah, sure it does.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Between him and God, we'll prove it.

[Narrator]

Now, two days before Sheila's new trial begins, he's going to be all in black.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Okay.

[Narrator]

He's flying in from Austin, Texas at his own expense to testify.

[Sheila Bryan]

Hi, Sheila, how are you?

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

I'm fine, how are you?

[Narrator]

To he hopes, shoot down the state's theory.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I'm interested in cases that use junk science to persecute people. Because I'm a scientist and it really offends me.

[Narrator]

The state's experts said that only a fire started with a flammable liquid. An accelerant could have blazed through Sheila's car as this one did. The jurors bought it.

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

The hottest portion of fire was across the Floorboard.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

And that meant what to you?

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

That there was an accelerant of some sort, period? Yes. No doubt in my mind.

[Narrator]

So Sheila must have started it. The jury reasoned, since cars certainly don't set themselves on fire. But Gerald Hearst thinks that may be exactly what this one did.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

In my mind, it was probably caused by the ignition switch.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

The US Government looks into a potential fire hazard.

[Narrator]

For years, Ford was in the news because ignition switches in some Ford and Mercury vehicles were causing them to burst into flames. The suspect switches were installed in more than 23 million Fords from 1984 to 1993. Just months before Freda Weeks died, Ford recalled about a third of those vehicles. Sheila's model was not included because Ford says its switch design is different. But critics say it poses the same potential fire hazard.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

This particular ignition switch has a history of starting fires like that. And the fires that have been started by ignition switches look a lot like this fire.

[Narrator]

Looked at Sheila's trial, state investigators said they eliminated all accidental causes. Which of the experts at this trial

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

did you find to be the most persuasive?

[Juror]

Ralph Newell.

[Sheila Bryan]

Ralph Newell.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

Truth. The whole truth, nothing but truth.

[Narrator]

Ralph Newell was a prosecution expert who was originally brought in by the insurance company.

[Juror]

They couldn't sway him. He had an answer. Every question they presented him, he had a reasonable and believable answer.

[Narrator]

Newell was never asked about the ignition switch, something he knew a lot about. Just a year before the fire, he was a consultant consultant to Ford, heading its ignition switch task force. Were you surprised that the whole ignition

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

switch thing never came up in the first trial?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I was flabbergasted, particularly when she said she had trouble turning the key mechanism off. That's a red flag.

[Narrator]

Gerald Hurst argues that the state's theory is simply wrong. If pouring of the liquid didn't cause

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

this long, irregular burn pattern.

[Narrator]

What?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

Did you fall down?

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Fall down?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

Yeah, dripping flaming plastic. There's more of that flammable plastic right there.

[Narrator]

Hearst says the plastic and foam in today's cars are chemical cousins of gasoline. Once ignited, nothing extra is needed for a car to burn intensely.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

Well, here's your pour your liquid.

[Podcast Host Lloyd Lockridge]

Pour.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

It's coming. I had to heat the plastic up.

[Narrator]

Andy says he can prove it using materials from some 87 cougars, the same model Sheila drove that fateful day.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I got a piece of carpet, and I've got a piece of the steering column shroud.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Here.

[Narrator]

Sheila and her supporters watch as Hearst experiments.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I just want to see if I can set that carpet on fire by letting plastic drip on it. There we go. She's starting. The plastic catches on fire and begins to burn. As it burns, it melts. And as the melting drops, they're like little flaming meteors. You're watching the plastic not self extinguish when it hits the carpet. If you can get a fire started, you can burn a whole car out without an accelerator.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

My heart's fluttering. You just wanted answers, concrete stuff to be able to put your finger on, to say, you know, this is what happened.

[Narrator]

At last Sheila says she understands how this tragic fire may have started. But with the trial about to begin, everyone is nervous.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

It's scary.

[Narrator]

It's really scary because we were so

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

positive at the last trial.

[Narrator]

Even the expert they're counting on.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I hope it'll help her. Truth and justice don't always prevail at trial.

[Narrator]

When we come back.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

There was nothing wrong with the ignition switch when I examined it.

[Narrator]

The battle begins at trial.

[Podcast Host Lloyd Lockridge]

Hi, my name is Lloyd Lockridge and I'm the host of a new podcast from Odyssey called Family Lore. In this podcast I'm going to have people on to tell unusual and sometimes far fetched stories about their families.

[Narrator]

I've heard my whole life that she invented the margarita.

[Podcast Host Lloyd Lockridge]

And then we're going to investigate those stories and find out how much of it is true.

[Podcast Guest]

He gets a patent one month before the Wright brothers.

[Narrator]

Oh my God.

[Podcast Host Lloyd Lockridge]

Please follow and listen to Family Lore, an Odyssey podcast, available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your shows.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

7:15. Come on, silly goose. Come on. Want you to smell good. She actually doesn't remember the trial before. So to help ease her mind, she wanted to come.

[Narrator]

Sheila Bryan is letting her 10 year old daughter Carrie skip school today.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

This is the first day of the trial and I'm jittery, a little scared.

[Narrator]

So she can be in court when Sheila stands trial.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

If you leave things to a child's imagination, it can really go wild. She needed to be able to visualize what was going on.

[Narrator]

It's been three and a half years since her mother died in Sheila's car. And prosecutor Brad Shealy insists it was murder.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

Basically, Ms. Bryan took her mother in a car, drove the car off the side of the road, put inidable fluid in there and lit it.

[Narrator]

If convicted again, Sheila will go to prison for life.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

You swear it's a testimony about the giving the following criminal matter to be the truth, the whole truth and never let truth help you God.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

Yes, sir.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

All right. Did you notice anything about the gas cap with the gas flap on the car?

[Narrator]

Gas cap was missing and the filler cap was open. Sheila's new lawyer, Converse Bright, argues there is nothing very suspicious about that.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

If something occurs, you can either look at it as a sinister thing or an innocent thing.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

Many people think when you wreck a car and you have a gas tank open, it's going to explode.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Leaving the gas cap off is something that I do, and I think a lot of people do all the time.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

Once you got on the scene, what did you do?

[Narrator]

By the day's end, she lay down,

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

went to sleep, and she did good.

[Narrator]

All the Bryans are a little relieved.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

I think it went real well. Good, Pug.

[Narrator]

But the next day, the experts who were key to Sheila's first conviction again testify. Ronnie Dobbins from the fire marshal's office and fire expert Ralph Newell.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

It's my opinion this fire was incendiary in its origin.

[Narrator]

Sheila is hoping her expert, Gerald Hearst, can convince the jury that a faulty ignition switch probably started this fire.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

It's in exactly the right location for what they described as the point of origin of this fire.

[Narrator]

But Ralph Newell flatly dismisses that theory.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

I considered it very seriously, and I found no problems with it other than it being exposed to a fire.

[Narrator]

And although it never came up at the first trial, Ronnie Dobbins says the switch was long ago ruled out.

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

I didn't see any cause to call an engineer or anything in to review it.

[Narrator]

Still, he seems a bit daunted by the details.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

What does an ignition switch look like? Tell the jury what an ignition switch looks like.

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

It's just wires and some metal components on the steering column.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

How big is it? 3 inches long, 6 inches long? Is it a foot long?

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

I have no idea. I mean, I've never took one apart.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Did you look at the ignition switch on this Mercury Cougar?

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

Did I?

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

He couldn't tell you how long it was, how big it was, how it was shaped, what color it was. Can you or can you not describe it?

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

No, sir.

[Narrator]

Ralph Newell, however, is not so easily rattled.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

The lack of destruction above the switch, the berm patterns around the switch area, the lack of damage to the wiring harness around the switch, none of that indicated there was a switch problem.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

He knows what he's talking about. He knows what ignition switch looks like. He says it wasn't the ignition switch. I mean, that's pretty definitive evidence on that.

[Narrator]

Shealy contends that all evidence shows that Sheila Bryan set the fire to murder her mother.

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

There was a burn pattern extended.

[Narrator]

Both Newell and Dobbins testify that only a flammable liquid could cause the intense irregular burn pattern they saw.

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

There's nothing other that can produce that type of pattern.

[Narrator]

That burn pattern is hard to see in the charred remains. But one small part of it clearly does stand out.

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

There was some burning along the threshold of the door.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

What does that indicate to you?

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

That the door was open at the

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

time of the fire.

[Narrator]

Hard evidence, he says that someone shut that door after the fire began.

[Fire Marshal Ronnie Dobbins]

That's a protected area. When this door is closed, there should be no fire damage whatsoever to this threshold.

[Narrator]

The first jury found that very telling.

[Juror]

She maintains that she shut the door to go get for help. And if that was the case, then how did the burn patterns get on the running board?

[Narrator]

And Newell insists the patterns he saw were not caused by dripping flaming plastic.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

When I cleaned the carpet, I looked for the residue of burning plastic or any pattern created by burning plastic that might give me a false lead. I did not find that.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

I thought McNeill did very well understand. I think he's a very personable fellow and I think his credibility was very good with the jury.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

He sure worked that jury as well

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

as protruding out the door.

[Narrator]

Just hang in there, you've been doing good. Sheila is worried. Worried that this jury will be swayed as the first one was.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

It's just going to be whoever the jury believes. And that's sad, just going to boil down to somebody's opinion. I'm still trusting in the Lord.

[Narrator]

And she's also counting more than ever on Gerald Hearst, who says he can explain the state's most incriminating evidence.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

And they said that could only have been caused by an accelerant being poured there. I found the real cause.

[Narrator]

When 48 Hours continues. It was a very loving, very normal mother daughter relationship.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Did you ever see Sheila treat her mother violently?

No, sir.

[Narrator]

At trial, the State of the Georgia insists that Sheila Bryan in fact did have reason to murder her mother.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

Her mother was not the same person that she had loved and cared for all these years and that the stress of dealing with her got too much.

[Narrator]

That motive makes no sense at all to Sheila's friends and family.

[Sheila Bryan]

Mama Weeks and Sheila had an enviable relationship.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

They were not only mother and daughter, they were friends.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Sheila had no skeletons in her closet.

[Family Member]

They had the very best of relationship.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

All the people who should have known something sinister came forward and testified for you. Do you solemnly swear?

But Carla actually testified?

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

Yeah, they had a very good relationship. They were very close.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

It's painful to see your child up there.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

Mama did everything she could for Grandma, though.

[Narrator]

Character witnesses may help her some.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

Anybody who knows my mother knows she's not capable of anything like that.

[Narrator]

It's the experts who probably will decide Sheila's fate. Can the state's experts once again convince a jury beyond reasonable doubt that she set fire to her car?

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

Had the fire originated at the ignition switch?

[Narrator]

Testifying for the prosecution, fire investigator Ralph Newell, who says he ruled out all accidental causes, including the defense's favorite, the ignition switch.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

I examined the components. There's no arcing, no problems with those, and no evidence of failure of that ignition switch.

[Narrator]

But then he is grilled about his ties to Ford.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

And they paid you 150,000 or so last year.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

You have the numbers.

[Narrator]

And his role in heading a task force the company set up to investigate its ignition switches.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

I was asked in 1995 to go out in the field to determine if this was really a problem.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Of 95.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

Of 95. And said, yep, you got a problem.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

You didn't make any reports about ignition switches then, did you?

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

No written reports, no, sir. At their request, because that was at their instructions, I did whatever council asked me to do.

[Narrator]

Ford's recall in 1996 only went back to 1988 and didn't include 87 cougars like Sheila's because Ford says those older ignition switches have a different design. But critics contend switches in those models have the same potential fire problem.

[Fire Expert Chris Bloom]

They can catch fire. It's a random event, but the possibility does exist that it will catch fire.

[Family Member or Friend]

Truth?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

The whole truth.

[Narrator]

The defense's first fire expert, Chris Bloom, says in this case, the switch could have sparked the blaze.

[Fire Expert Chris Bloom]

All I can say is fire damage is consistent with what I've seen upper half here. What I was concerned with was making sure the jury had all the facts. The first trial did not mention the Ford ignition switch at all.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

You solemnly swear that.

[Narrator]

Finally, Sheila's star witness takes the stand.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

There we go. She's starting.

[Narrator]

Gerald Hurst describes his experiments with the plastic stripped from 1987 cougars like Sheila's.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

It burns furiously. It's extremely impressive. Very hot, very big flames, billowing smoke. It's a sight to behold.

[Narrator]

Not only is that enough to fuel an intense fire, he says it produces. That's right, irregular burn patterns.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

No accelerant required.

[Narrator]

And Hearst challenges the state's most convincing evidence. Remember the burn that supposedly proved Sheila's door was open when the fire began? Hurst found how there might be damage even with that door closed.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

There is a break, a factory break, in the door seal there. And there is also some ancient damage to the metal bar that holds that seal. It has been bent out because that

[Narrator]

seal was not airtight. He says melted plastic flowed through it.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

You had a very hot car and you had flaming melted plastic and it behaved just like any other liquid. It simply flowed under the door through the break. This mass of plastic flowed into here, down through this breach here and subsequently spread a little to the right and a lot to the left.

[Narrator]

The state's experts would have seen that, he says, had they not ignored a vital clue.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

The obvious thing when I looked at it was there are two marks that look the same.

[Narrator]

A second mark further back on the threshold.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

The similarity is remarkable. You look at the colors and the shapes of these things, you can say, well, they were obviously caused by the same phenomenon.

[Narrator]

That second mark is nowhere near that burned trail in the front of the car.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

Those two patterns there were not caused by an accelerant. Those. Those were caused by flowing plastic. And there is no doubt in my mind about that.

[Narrator]

Which brings him back to the ignition switch as the most likely culprit.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I believe that is by far the most probable cause.

[Narrator]

But Hearst does admit he cannot prove his theory.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

You cannot definitely say that the fire was caused by the electrical short in the ignition twist if it occurred, can you?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I cannot definitely say that it was not caused by a meteor. But if you look at it from a reasonable standpoint, this is probably an electrical fire.

[Narrator]

Could it have been an accident or was the fire deliberately set? Which experts? All of them highly experienced. Will the jury believe the closer it

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

gets, the more anxious you get when we come back.

[Minister or Funeral Officiant]

Lord, we just ask for return of

[Narrator]

verdict not guilty Sheila's fate the verdict.

[Ryan Reynolds (Mint Mobile Advertiser)]

Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. I don't know if you knew this, but anyone can get the same premium wireless for 15amonth plan that I've been enjoying. It's not just for celebrities. So do like I did and have one of your assistant's assistants switch you to Mint Mobile today. I'm told it's super easy to [e-mail]

[Carvana Advertiser]

Switch upfront payment of $45 for 3 month plan equivalent to $15 per month Required intro rate first 3 months only then full price plan options available taxes and fees, extra [e-mail].

[Minister or Funeral Officiant]

My heavenly Father, these have been trying days for Sheila and we come with humble hearts. We know that a lot of circumstances have been presented as charges against her. We pray that these might melt away in the minds of the jurors.

[Narrator]

Sheila Bryan is steeling herself for the jury's decision. Good day, ma' Am. Will she go home with her family or go back to prison for life?

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Carrie's the one I'm really worried about. Last night she was real upset. I guess it just hit her, you know, she is crying and crying and crying.

[Narrator]

The jurors take three hours to decide. We, the jury, find the defendant, Sheila

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

Bryan, as to count one, not guilty.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

When he said the first count, not guilty, it was just like the people in the courtroom sucked out the air because everyone gasped.

[Narrator]

Count two, not guilty. Count three, not guilty.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

It was just like.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

And then.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

Yes.

[Narrator]

And so three and a half long years after her ordeal began, Sheila Bryan is acquitted on all charges. We said it was gonna be all right for Sheila. And the Lord reigns. It's a triumph of faith.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

God be the glory, honey.

[Narrator]

For these jurors, it's simply a question of sound judgment.

[Juror or Observer]

They did not give us any evidence that she did do it. And we're supposed to convict her on their say so.

[Narrator]

They're skeptical of the state scenario.

[Juror or Observer]

She would have to have a can, whatever, go down that ditch bank that

[Sheila Bryan]

was a steep embankment.

[Juror or Observer]

She would have to pour it in the floorboard and take a chance on, you know, it catching her and hope that nobody came down that road.

[Narrator]

They are unimpressed by the state's evidence.

[Sheila Bryan]

They didn't prove to us that there was an accelerant in that car.

[Juror or Observer]

That's right. And there was no motive.

[Narrator]

And Leary of state expert Ralph Newell

[Juror or Observer]

ford pays him $150,000. Do you honestly think he's going to come in here and say that it was an ignition fire or it could have been ignition fire to them?

[Narrator]

Defense star witness Gerald Hearst made more sense.

[Juror or Observer]

He had more credibility with the jury than anybody.

[Narrator]

Thank you, Dr. Hearst.

[Sheila Bryan]

Thank you so much.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I wouldn't have been able to do this if I hadn't gotten all that help down here. She's got best friends in the world.

[Friend or Acquaintance]

That's Turnip Greens.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

How much did you make off of this?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I didn't make much in the way of money, thank you. Sheila did make me a chicken casserole.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

That was it.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

I got very well fed for an entire week.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

You did this pro bono?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

Oh, yes.

[Narrator]

What do you make of the fact

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

that another jury not only convicted this woman, but sent her to prison for life?

[Sheila Bryan]

With the evidence that we had, I see no reason they could have done it.

[Narrator]

Still, some jurors from the first trial,

[Fire Investigator or Juror]

there's no doubt in my mind, stand

[Narrator]

firm in their conviction.

[Juror]

In my heart, I still think she's guilty. Whether she's A free woman today or not. I still feel like she's guilty.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

You have a woman sent to prison for life next trial, guilty. She's acquitted, she's free.

[Narrator]

I mean, what does this tell you?

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

It tells me that there's an awful lot of randomness in our court system. It's remarkable, it's frightening.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

But it was only a fluke that Sheila Bryan ever found these experts.

[Narrator]

District attorney David Miller admits had he known at the onset what he knows now, it's possible Sheila Bryan might never even have faced charges.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

So you now know all about the ignition switch theory. Do you honestly believe that Sheila Bryant killed her mother?

[District Attorney David Miller]

What's important is what 12 jurors decided unanimously.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

You're not gonna say, are you?

[District Attorney David Miller]

No, ma'.

[Fire Investigator Ralph Newell]

Am.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

It's bad enough that it was done to me, but it's worse that it was done to my children.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Somebody in school said something bad about your mom today. What'd they say?

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

That she was a murderer.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

People need to realize, you know, just how easily this could have happened, even to them.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

Hey, strike two. That's just slowly sinks in. Maybe it's all over, you know the

[Narrator]

girl know for certain now their mother will not be taken away again.

[Sheila's Husband Carlos]

But none of us will never be quite exact the same.

[Narrator]

Sheila says she is finally beginning to come to grips with losing her mother.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Now she can rest.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Do you believe that she died before that fire started?

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Yeah, I do. And that helps me.

[Narrator]

What helps even more, she says, is remembering I how Freda Weeks lived.

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Always tried to be a strong person. My mother was a strong person.

[Interviewer or Lawyer]

Would she have had confidence that you would make it through this okay?

[Sheila Bryan (Prison and Home)]

Yeah. Yeah, she would have.

[Podcast Guest]

You didn't start a business just to keep the lights on. You're here to sell more today than yesterday. You're here to win. Lucky for you, Shopify built the best converting checkout on the planet. Like the just one tapping ridiculously fast acting sky high sales stacking champion at checkouts. That's the good stuff right there. So if your business is in it to win it, win with Shopify. Start your free trial [e-mail] win.

[Friend or Acquaintance]

Pluto TV has thousands of free movies and TV shows.

[Sheila's Friend or Advocate]

We're coming at you with everything we got.

[Narrator]

This is, this is the mindset free.

[Court Official or Lawyer]

This is the mantra.

[Sheila's Daughter (Carrie or Carla)]

Mindset, mindset.

[Friend or Acquaintance]

With movies like Pineapple Express, the entire Star Trek film franchise and Gladiator, and TV shows like Survivor, SpongeBob SquarePants, the fairly odd Parents and Ghosts, Pluto TV is always free.

[Narrator]

Huzzah.

[Friend or Acquaintance]

Pluto TV stream now pay never.