Introducing: American Homicide

Summary

Betrayal: Weekly – Episode Summary: Introducing "American Homicide"

Host: Andrea Gunning
Produced by: iHeartPodcasts and Glass Podcasts
Release Date: November 5, 2024
Episode Title: Introducing: American Homicide

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I. Introduction to "American Homicide"

In the latest episode of Betrayal: Weekly, host Andrea Gunning unveils an exciting addition to the true crime landscape: a new docuseries titled "American Homicide." Produced by Glass Podcasts and a collaboration with iHeartPodcasts, this series promises a deep dive into some of America's most harrowing criminal cases.

Andrea Gunning introduces the series by stating:

"I want to introduce you to a new weekly true crime show that our team at Glass Podcast has just launched. It's called American Homicide and is hosted and produced by my colleague Sloan Glass, who I have here today."
[02:36]

Sloan Glass, the host and producer of American Homicide, brings extensive experience from working on Betrayal seasons two and three. Andrea emphasizes Sloan's close ties to the Betrayal community and her passion for uncovering the truth behind complex criminal cases.

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II. Overview of "American Homicide"

"American Homicide" is designed to offer an immersive experience, going beyond mere retellings of crime stories. Instead, it provides a "reexamination of infamous true crime stories through firsthand accounts," including perspectives from law enforcement, legal experts, and those directly impacted by the crimes.

Sloan Glass elaborates on the show's unique approach:

"You are hearing from law enforcement who is behind the investigations. You are hearing from lawyers. You are hearing from judges. You are hearing from victims and their friends and family."
[03:34]

She highlights the importance of understanding how each crime is influenced by its specific community and environment, drawing from her experiences as both a local and national news reporter.

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III. Teaser: "Father's Day Murders"

The episode transitions into a teaser for the first installment of "American Homicide" titled "Father's Day Murders." This case delves into the tragic events that unfolded in El Rancho, New Mexico, where Cherie Ortiz discovered the brutal murders of her parents and brother on Father's Day 2011.

Sloan Glass provides a gripping overview:

"The episode is called the Father's Day Murders. Now you just have to imagine it's Father's Day. You go to your parents' house for dinner, you open the door, and you find your mom, dad, and brother beaten to death."
[05:03]

Cherie Ortiz's harrowing experience sets the stage for a complex investigation riddled with suspicion and community upheaval.

---

IV. Highlights from "Father's Day Murders, Part One"

The narrative unfolds with detailed accounts of the crime scene and the immediate aftermath. Key moments include:

• Cherie Ortiz's Discovery: Cherie walks into her parents' home to find them and her brother brutally murdered. Overwhelmed by panic, she makes her first 911 call.

  "[12:30] Cherie Ortiz: Sheree frantically told the 911 operator that her mother, father, and brother were shot to death."

• Initial Investigation: The New Mexico State Police arrive to investigate, facing a scene of extreme violence that challenges even the most seasoned officers.

  "[14:21] Detective Alex Cross: In this case, the magnitude of the violence involved was the worst that I had seen in my career."

• Suspicion Falls on the Family: Due to financial strains and conflicting details in Cherie's account, suspicion naturally gravitates toward Cherie and her husband, Jesse Ortiz.

  "[27:03] Detective Alex Cross: It could mean a number of things, that maybe they were wearing gloves or they covered their hands in some way...
  [28:42] Cherie Ortiz: ...and why didn't she call 911 till 7 that evening?"

• Community Impact: The tight-knit community of El Rancho grapples with fear and mistrust as the investigation stalls, leading to increased tension and speculation.

  "[23:16] Cherie Ortiz: Since El Rancho didn't have a police force of their own, the New Mexico State Police handled the investigation."
  "[25:28] Alex Tomlin: So the one thing about the Ortiz murder was really the pressure on the police."

• Media Involvement: Local reporter Alex Tomlin interviews Cherie Ortiz, providing an intimate look into her emotional struggle and the community's desperation for answers.

  "[35:13] Alex Tomlin: I remember distinctly being in the kitchen and we were talking about her brother Stephen... It was just really traumatic standing there and knowing this is where he died."

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V. Conclusion and Next Steps

The episode concludes with a cliffhanger as Ashley Roybal, a 23-year-old local woman, is arrested and claims to know the truth behind the Ortiz family murders. This pivotal moment sets the stage for "Father's Day Murders, Part Two," promising listeners an in-depth exploration of the revelations and their implications for justice.

Sloan Glass teases the continuation:

"Find out what Ashley says really happened that night on part two of the Father's Day murders. That's next time on American Homicide."
[37:35]

Listeners are encouraged to engage with the series by subscribing to "American Homicide" on platforms like Apple Podcasts, ensuring they don't miss the unfolding of this compelling true crime story.

---

Notable Quotes

• Andrea Gunning:

  "I am so curious, what made you want to take on a project like American Homicide?"
  [03:22]

• Cherie Ortiz:

  "My family's dead. Somebody murdered my family. Somebody killed my family. How do you handle that?"
  [21:51]

• Detective Alex Cross:

  "If you don't investigate Jesse and Shervee to the fullest, you make a very easy argument for a defense attorney to create doubt in a jury's mind."
  [38:04]

---

Final Thoughts

This episode of Betrayal: Weekly not only introduces a promising new docuseries but also immerses listeners in the initial threads of a gripping true crime investigation. By blending firsthand accounts, investigative insights, and emotional testimonies, "American Homicide" aims to deliver a nuanced understanding of the darkest facets of human nature and the relentless pursuit of justice.

For those eager to delve deeper into the "Father's Day Murders," tune in to the next episode of "American Homicide" and follow the journey towards uncovering the truth behind one of El Rancho's most shocking crimes.

Transcript

[Andrea Gunning]

Attention parents and grandparents. Are you searching for the perfect gift for your kids this holiday season? Give the gift of adventure that will last all year long. A Guardian Bike the easiest, safest and quickest bikes for kids to learn on. Kids are learning to ride in just one day. No training wheels needed. I recently got my niece a Guardian bike and it's been amazing watching her learn to ride without training wheels. The bike's intuitive design made it easy for her to balance and with a bit of help from her grandparents, she was off on her own in no time. It's given her such a boost of confidence. She feels so free and independent every time she rides. Watching her reach this milestone has been priceless and Guardian made it truly special. Join the hundreds of thousands of happy families by getting a Guardian bike today. Their holiday sales have begun offering the biggest deal of the year. Save up to 33% on bikes. No code needed. Plus get free shipping and a free bike lock and pump with your first purchase after signing up for their newsletter, visit guardianbikes.com to take advantage of these deals and secure your holiday gifts today. Happy riding.

[Sloan Glass]

Black Friday is coming. And for the adults in your life who love the coolest toys, well, there's something for them this year too. Bartisian is the premier craft cocktail maker that automatically makes more than 60 seasonal and classic cocktails each in under 30 seconds at the push of a button. And right now, Bartisian is having a huge site wide sale. You can get $100 off any cocktail maker or cocktail maker bundle when you spend $400 or more. So if the cocktail lover in your life has been good this year or the right kind of bad, get them Bartesian at the push of a button. Make bar quality Cosmopolitans, Martinis, Manhattans and more all in just 30 seconds. All for 100 off. Amazing toys aren't just for kids. Get 100 off a cocktail maker when you spend 400 through Cyber Monday. Visit bartesian.com cocktail that's B A R T E S I A N dot com cocktail now streaming on Prime Video.

[Detective Alex Cross]

You can call me Detective Alex Cross.

[Sloan Glass]

Based on characters created by James Patterson.

[Detective Alex Cross]

We have to catch this serial killer.

[Cherie Ortiz]

I don't kill for fun.

[Sloan Glass]

And created by Ben Watkins, Ms. Killer.

[Detective Alex Cross]

Thinks he's the smartest guy in the room.

[Sloan Glass]

Aldous Hodge is DC's funnest Alex Cross.

[Detective Alex Cross]

If we don't find him soon, we.

[Cherie Ortiz]

May never have another chance. Clock's ticking. You think you can stop him?

[Sloan Glass]

I know I can because I know.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Him better than he knows himself.

[Sloan Glass]

A new original series only on Prime Video. Watch now.

[Andrea Gunning]

Hi, Betrayal Family. It's Andrea Gunning. I want to introduce you to a new weekly true crime show that our team at Glass Podcast has just launched. It's called American Homicide and is hosted and produced by my colleague Sloan Glass, who I have here today. Hi, Sloan.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Hi, Andrea.

[Andrea Gunning]

You guys may not know this, but Sloane worked on season two of Betrayal, so she's very close to the Betrayal team.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Yeah, it feels very close to my heart. I mean, the highlight for me working on Betrayal was interviewing Avea for the show. I'd admired her for a long time as a listener, and then getting the opportunity to sit down with her, that felt so special.

[Andrea Gunning]

You know, I think you guys did an incredible job and they were in great hands with you. And I'm so curious, what made you want to take on a project like American Homicide?

[Cherie Ortiz]

What I really love about American Homicide is how immersive it is. It's not just a retelling. It's a reexamination of infamous true crime stories through firsthand accounts. You are hearing from law enforcement who is behind the investigations. You are hearing from lawyers. You are hearing from judges. You are hearing from victims and their friends and family. And I think what makes it so significant and special really plays off of when you are covering a story, it can be the same crime in a different location, and it will have a totally different impact depending on the community. I learned this as a local news reporter and later as a national news reporter, that you are dealing with very different circumstances wherever you are in the country. When a crime takes place in, let's say, a small town, what comes to mind for me in my personal experience as a journalist, I think of in Delphi, Indiana, there was a case that had gone cold for six years. Two girls had been killed, and it was a town of 1300 people. That's different from when a crime like that happens in a city. The first story that we have in American Homicide, it made me feel that same way.

[Andrea Gunning]

So on the feed, we're sharing an episode of American Homicide called the Father's Day Murders. Can you tell us a little bit about what happens?

[Cherie Ortiz]

The episode is called the Father's Day Murders. Now you just have to imagine it's Father's Day. You go to your parents house for dinner, you open the door, and you find your mom, dad, and brother beaten to death. And that's what happened to a woman in the small town of El Rancho, New Mexico. The main suspect for a substantial amount of time was the daughter who had found her family. It just leaves you wondering what was going on here. Someone must know something and they're in the community and they're in the community. And this is a woman who had to fight to find answers to what exactly happened to her family. And meanwhile, everyone is looking at her like she was involved.

[Andrea Gunning]

I'm so excited for this series. Sloan, you're phenomenal. The storytelling is fantastic. The episodes that I have heard you are just at every twist and turn, just on the edge of your seat. And I don't doubt that the betrayal audience is going to love it. So without further ado, here's American Homicide. Father's day murders, part one.

[911 Operator]

Santa Fe911, where's your emergency?

[Cherie Ortiz]

It was Father's Day 2011 when Cherie Ortiz walked into her parents home and found the bodies of her mother and father.

[Detective Alex Cross]

They had been shot in the head and it had occurred sometime earlier in the day.

[911 Operator]

I just walked in their house and everybody shot in the head.

[Detective Alex Cross]

The brutality was unspeakable.

[Cherie Ortiz]

The hunt to find the killer would tear the community apart and devastate Cherie.

[Alex Tomlin]

I really do have hope. This is going to get soft.

[Cherie Ortiz]

My name is Sloan Glass. I'm a journalist who covered the Long island serial killer, the Delphi, Indiana murders, and many other high profile true crime cases. And now I'm the host of American Homicide, a podcast where we take you across the country to investigate some of America's deadliest crimes. We'll explore how these murders are shaped by their unique landscapes and how these tragedies have shaped the fabric of these American communities forever. Today we're in the tiny village of El Rancho, New Mexico for part one of the Father's Day murders on American Homicide. As a note, this podcast contains subject matter which may not be suitable for all audiences. Discretion is advised. Let me paint a picture for you. Santa Fe, New Mexico is called the city different for its rich culture and diverse community. Native American ancestries blend with Spanish culture in a state with one of America's.

[Alex Tomlin]

Richest landscapes, Northern New Mexico in particular. It's a very unique place. It's beautiful.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Alex Tomlin was a local TV news reporter who lives in the area.

[Alex Tomlin]

It has impeccable weather and the mountains are incredible.

[Cherie Ortiz]

The region is home to natural hot springs and wild rivers.

[Alex Tomlin]

You can drive an hour north and go whitewater rafting, or you can go down to White Sands and enjoy that. But kind of on the outskirts of Santa Fe, you get a lot of the smaller communities.

[Cherie Ortiz]

And one such place is the tiny village of El Rancho, the predominantly Hispanic community is about 20 miles from Santa Fe and is built around co op farming and churches.

[Alex Tomlin]

It's a lot of people who have kind of grown there, have families there, kind of all know each other, but.

[Cherie Ortiz]

It'S also a desolate place.

[Alex Tomlin]

One of the things about New Mexico is it's so open. When you go to someone's home, often they have a significant sized proper. There's not neighbors very close.

[Cherie Ortiz]

And even though the homes are all spread out across the desert, everyone kind.

[Alex Tomlin]

Of knows each other. But there is an interesting dynamic here. As much as it's known for its beauty, it's also known for the crime.

[Cherie Ortiz]

The tragic murders on Father's Day 2011 would stretch the fabric of El Rancho to its limits.

[Alex Tomlin]

So June 18, 2011 seemed like any normal night.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Cherie Ortiz had dinner plans with her parents, Lloyd and Dixie.

[Alex Tomlin]

Cherie Ortiz, she lived on the property with the Ortiz's.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Her parents and brother lived in a large one story house and Cherie and her husband lived in an RV next door. Even though there's a fence around their spacious property, the family had an open door policy.

[Alex Tomlin]

Anyone could come in, have dinner at their table or spend time with them. They were just kind of a good family in this community that was very tight knit.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Lloyd Ortiz was a man who loved to use his hands. He owned his own ceramic tile business. His craftsmanship turned up in homes and even luxury hotels all over northern New Mexico.

[Alex Tomlin]

He was an incredibly loving father, A hardworking man who provided for his family, his wife, Dixie.

[Cherie Ortiz]

They sound like a perfect pair. Dixie was passionate about working with the elderly and the disabled. She was an activities director at a local retirement home and she fostered children with special needs.

[Alex Tomlin]

They took in a child who had chicken baby syndrome and adopted him as their own. Raised that child, loved that child.

[Cherie Ortiz]

That child's name was Stephen. Stephen had special needs from his early life injuries. His brain never developed beyond that of a nine year old. But he matured into a young man that his family called the gentle Giant. He loved to play drums, ride his ATV and fish with Lloyd.

[Alex Tomlin]

They were just really giving, loving people. Very northern New Mexico, hardworking, you know, love the land, loved the culture kind of thing.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Since it was Father's Day, Cherie Ortiz whipped up a plate of homemade enchiladas for dinner. It was her gift. Just before 7:00 that evening, she took them and walked next door to her parents. Even though it was June white Christmas, icicle lights still hung on the gutters of her parents home. Inside the Walls were adorned with crucifixes and some of Lloyd's handmade tiles.

[Alex Tomlin]

Cherie said she walks in and realizes something's very wrong. She found her mother in bed. Her mother's head was pretty damaged. She thought someone maybe had shot her. She then went into the kitchen area and found what she thought was her father on the kitchen floor. The body was just so impacted by what was used against them. There's these two bodies, there's blood everywhere. She goes screaming out of the house and for her husband again. They lived on the property so it was pretty close.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Cherise husband. Jessie ran right over to investigate.

[Alex Tomlin]

Her husband then comes in the house and he realizes it's not her father on the kitchen floor. It's actually her brother. And that's when he starts searching around and finds her father outside. Right outside the back door, kind of in the field there.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Lloyd's body was found on a cinder block path that connected the Ortiz back porch to their fenced in yard. He was face down, wearing only his underwear. His eyeglasses sat just inches away. Covering his head was some green shrubbery. By now, Sheree was on the phone.

[911 Operator]

Santa Fe 911, where's your emergency? What is your name? It's Sheree.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Sheree frantically told the 911 operator that her mother, father and brother were shot to death.

[911 Operator]

I just walked in their house and everybody shot in the head. My brother, my dad and my mom still in bed.

[Cherie Ortiz]

This was Cherie's second attempt at a 911 call. Since Cherie and her parents homes were out in the middle of the desert, her cell reception was spotty. Imagine the panic, the fear that your call would drop again when you're trying to get emergency help for your family. And she didn't know where the perpetrator was or if they were still on the property.

[911 Operator]

Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. I am freaking out. I can't even walk over there because I lose service.

[Cherie Ortiz]

And then there's another problem. El Rancho is way off the beaten path which delays the response time for law enforcement.

[911 Operator]

Oh my gosh. You have to hurry. You have to tell me to hurry. They're on the way.

[Cherie Ortiz]

With no local police force of their own, the New Mexico State Police were dispatched to investigate.

[911 Operator]

They can't believe they're already there. I can't believe I didn't come check earlier this morning. Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God.

[Andrea Gunning]

Why?

[911 Operator]

You know, and all because I didn't have money for a Father's Day gift. I Didn't want to go until I finished cooking enchiladas for him.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Right.

[911 Operator]

Oh, my God.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Shareese stayed on the phone for nearly 20 minutes before officers arrived.

[911 Operator]

All the units are going as fast.

[Cherie Ortiz]

As I can to get back.

[911 Operator]

I'm going to walk to the gate and wait for them. I'm like too nervous just sitting in my yard.

[Detective Alex Cross]

My name is Paul Chavez. I was a member of the full time crime scene unit as an agent with the New Mexico State Police.

[Cherie Ortiz]

The 200 homicide cases officer Chavez worked in his career didn't prepare him for what he saw inside the Ortiz house.

[Detective Alex Cross]

In this case, the magnitude of the violence involved was the worst that I had seen in my career. The brutality was unspeakable. Sherry Ortiz had found her parents and her adopted stepbrother dead within the residence. She reported that they had been shot in the head and it had occurred sometime earlier in the day.

[Cherie Ortiz]

It turns out that although Cherie said she didn't see who committed these murders, she did hear something.

[Detective Alex Cross]

There was reportedly gunshots heard the previous night in the area.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Now, hearing gunshots isn't entirely unusual in New Mexico, but Cherie and her parents homes sit on a dead end street in the rural New Mexico desert. It's a remote area with unpaved roads and no nearby streetlights. Their nearest neighbor is about 50 yards up the road. Inside the Ortiz home, Officer Chavez and his team assess the situation.

[Detective Alex Cross]

Once I enter into the residence, there is a master bedroom immediately to the left as you walk in. And that is where the first victim, identified as Dixie Ortiz, is in her bed in her nightgown, under the blankets.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Dixie was found clutching her pillow, her.

[Detective Alex Cross]

Upper extremities, and her head is completely saturated in blood where she had sustained apparent trauma. From that bedroom. There is a drip trail which extends to the kitchen area where we have a second victim, a young man identified as Stephen Ortiz.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Stephen, her adopted brother, lay face down in a pool of blood, wearing only his underwear. Police noted that he took the brunt of the attack.

[Detective Alex Cross]

This scene was absolutely brutal.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Stephen was 21 years old at the time of his murder. And based on his injuries, police believe that he tried to fight off the killer before ultimately losing that battle.

[Detective Alex Cross]

The blood continued from that area out the back door where the third victim, Lloyd Ortiz, was found. Outside the back porch, there was a significant amount of bloodshed, indicating that he did sustain some massive trauma. And there was also shrubbery from a nearby bush that was covering his head.

[Cherie Ortiz]

That's two bloodied bodies inside the home and one outside. And then something else stood out to law enforcement.

[Detective Alex Cross]

There was a small marijuana girl on the property. It was fenced off and padlocked. They did have a medical marijuana card for Stephen for some of the medical conditions he has, but none of the.

[Cherie Ortiz]

17 marijuana plants appeared to be disturbed. In fact, nothing seemed to be stolen or even out of place. On the kitchen table in plain view sat Lloyd's wallet containing hundreds of dollars.

[Detective Alex Cross]

This did not look like a robbery. It looked like a case of anger. A lot of anger based on the brutality that occurred.

[Cherie Ortiz]

It was a Father's Day to forget for residents in this tiny suburb of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Lloyd and Dixie Ortiz were pillars of the tight knit El Rancho community. They were quick to lend a helping hand to others in need. So who was angry enough to harm them and why?

[Andrea Gunning]

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[Sloan Glass]

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[Andrea Gunning]

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[Cherie Ortiz]

Shuria Ortiz lived in an RV right next door to her parents house on the same property. Both homes sat on a sprawling lot surrounded by hills in the dusty El Rancho, New Mexico desert. On the evening of Father's Day 2011, Cherie walked into her parents house and found her mother, father and brother savagely murdered. Like many others in the community, Pastor John Trujillo was in shock.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

I get a phone call. They call me pj. Pastor John says, PJ, they found Steven, Lloyd and Dixie dead. I said, what are you talking about? Was it a car accident? What happened? He says, no, it seems like they were murdered in their home. You need to get down here right away. And as I drive up, the community is already showing up. State police are there. And about that time Cherie made her way out and she was just in tears and tears and tears and just Pastor John My family's dead. My family's dead. Somebody murdered my family. Somebody killed my family. How do you handle that? What do you do I mean, can you imagine the emotional and physical and just spiritual distraught that you would face? Nobody can prepare for that. I don't care. Nobody's prepared to walk into a scene like that, especially the daughter. The family was grieving and they were mourning. It's El Rancho. This isn't supposed to happen in a community like this. People are speculating that, could this have happened from the community? Did somebody come here from somewhere else? Was it a family member? Was it a friend? Was it a robbery that went wrong? You know, why, why, why? He was like, okay, we need some answers.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Since El Rancho didn't have a police force of their own, the New Mexico State Police handled the investigation. By morning, the police still didn't know much.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

We're still unsure as to what happened out there.

[Detective Alex Cross]

The guys are still working it, working.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Very hard to determine what exactly happened. But at this point, we still don't know.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

How in the world could something like this happen? You know, one person dead, okay, but when there's three, it raises a lot, a lot of questions.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Police believe that three victims were shot to death inside their home, but nothing appeared to be missing. Investigators wondered if it was a murder or a murder suicide. Officer Paul Chavez was one of the first responders.

[Detective Alex Cross]

My role primarily is to process and document the crime scene and try and make sense of what occurred there.

[Cherie Ortiz]

But the severity of the crime scene limited what he was able to do.

[Detective Alex Cross]

You can't disturb the body much, and with the amount of bloodshed that was present, we weren't able to assess the wounds as well as we would like to have been able to.

[Cherie Ortiz]

So originally, the police believed all three victims were shot to death. But the results of the autopsies for each victim revealed something far more personal.

[Detective Alex Cross]

That these were, in fact, not gunshot wounds. There were actually lacerations that were penetrating with a blunt object.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Clearly, something was missing. When the police returned to the scene of the crime, they found a five pound pickaxe lying on the ground just over the fence of the adjacent property. And the pickaxe contained bloodstains.

[Detective Alex Cross]

What the pickaxe did provide us was DNA from all three victims. So we unequivocally had our murder weapon. However, we were unable to forensically link a suspect to the pickaxe.

[Cherie Ortiz]

So what does that mean? A murder weapon with DNA of the victims but nothing to indicate a suspect?

[Detective Alex Cross]

It could mean a number of things, that maybe they were wearing gloves or they covered their hands in some way or shape or form, and just sometimes the lab just can't find it. It's not 100% certainty that they're going to be able to find DNA. When something is touched, there's a chance that we will, but it doesn't always work out that way.

[Alex Tomlin]

So the one thing about the Ortiz murder was really the pressure on the police.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Reporter Alex Tomlin covered the story for a local TV station.

[Alex Tomlin]

There was an incredible amount of pressure from that small knit community, but also the surrounding communities. And so there was a lot of pressure on them to get who did it, make it a clean investigation, and let's get this person behind bars. And I'm sure at times that pressure was overwhelming.

[Cherie Ortiz]

The people of El Rancho couldn't shake the fear that they could be next.

[Alex Tomlin]

Nobody wants to think that they're gonna go to sleep and somebody who's pickaxed a couple and their son to death is going to come into their home next.

[Cherie Ortiz]

They even refused to talk to TV reporters, not because they felt pestered, but they were fearful of their own safety.

[Alex Tomlin]

And that's the other terrifying thing. Think about the strength it takes to push that pickaxe back multiple times and pickaxe someone to death. That is cold blooded, that is calculated, that is incredibly scary for a community because that person is dangerous. You know, when you can't easily tie up a case like this, when you can't say, oh, it's, you know, a scorned lover, or it's, you know, a drug deal gone wrong or different things like that, then it becomes a, what am I next? You want to find who did this because you don't want the community looking at you and saying, what are you doing? Why aren't you protecting us? Why don't you have the answers?

[Cherie Ortiz]

With no suspects, a weapon and murder scene free of any DNA, investigators started to look at the person who first discovered the bodies. That person was Shuri Ortiz.

[Alex Tomlin]

When something this horrific happens, the community wants answers and they want them quickly. Right? So you want to be able to tie a nice bow on this thing and be done with it. And Cherie and her husband seemed like that nice bow. They lived on the property. You could come up with a motive.

[Cherie Ortiz]

The police wondered if Cherie and her husband Jesse knew more than they were saying, especially after they listened back to Cherie's original 911 call.

[Alex Tomlin]

She's very frantic in that 911 call. As you can hear, they're dead, they're.

[911 Operator]

Gunshot one said, they're dead, dead, dead, dead, dead.

[Alex Tomlin]

She made some Comments on that 911 call about, you know, they must have been shot because of how they looked.

[911 Operator]

I just walked in their house and everybody shot in the head. My brother, my dad, and my mom still in bed.

[Alex Tomlin]

It wasn't later until the office of the medical investigator determined that actually they had been pickaxed to death.

[911 Operator]

And you have no idea who would have done that? No.

[Sloan Glass]

Do you see anybody around?

[911 Operator]

No. I didn't even know. I didn't even look. I just freaked out. Oh, my God. They were such good people. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. We have to f ing hurry.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Desperate and upset, Sheree spent 17 minutes on that 911 call. But as investigators listened back, they zeroed in on a comment Cherie said. Now listen closely to what Cherie told the operator.

[911 Operator]

They've been dead since the morning. They've been dead since this morning.

[Cherie Ortiz]

So Cherie said her parents had been dead since that morning. How did she know that? And why didn't she call 911 till 7 that evening?

[911 Operator]

I can't believe I didn't come check earlier this morning. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh my God. Why? You know, and all because I didn't have money for a Father's Day gift. I didn't want to go until I finished cooking enchiladas for him.

[Alex Tomlin]

They 100% thought she was a main suspect.

[911 Operator]

I can't believe this is happening.

[Andrea Gunning]

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[Sloan Glass]

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[Cherie Ortiz]

When Lloyd Dixie and Steven Ortiz were brutally murdered in their El Rancho home, their daughter Cherie and her husband Jessie appeared to investigators to be the only people with motive and the access to execute such a violent crime. For months, Cherie and Jessie felt the stares and heard the whispers. Their pastor, John Trujillo, tried to be the voice of reason.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

I think when you have to go through that like Jesse and Sheree did, I think it was just a reassurance that said, listen, you know, you need to do this, you need to go through this. Just cooperate with the state police investigators, whatever you need to do. Because it's just a process of elimination. They're looking for answers just as much as everybody else's and they need a starting point somewhere. Just go through the process, answer the questions, be honest, be truthful, and let them eliminate you, and then they can move forward from there.

[Detective Alex Cross]

So there were a number of red flags that required us to investigate Sherri and Jesse to the fullest.

[Cherie Ortiz]

State police agent Paul Chavez told the difficult line of questioning A mourning Cherie.

[Detective Alex Cross]

Could family gain from the. From the death of the victim? Sure they can. If there's insurance policies in place or is there property in place. Is there, is there something to be gained? That's definitely something that was going to be looked at.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Investigators asked about Sheree's credit card debt and the fact that she didn't pay her car loans or even the rent on her rv. And then there was this. Cherie also told investigators that she had removed $80,000 in cash from her parents home. But she didn't tell this to police until three days after the murders.

[Detective Alex Cross]

Jesse and Sherri involvement couldn't be ruled out.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Jesse and Sheree told detectives that they were at a local casino on the night of the murders.

[Detective Alex Cross]

But there was some conflicting statements between Cherie and Jessie.

[Cherie Ortiz]

The triple murder that rocked the close knit village of El Rancho turned friends into enemies, families into suspects.

[Alex Tomlin]

At the time, there was a lot of speculation about her and her husband and whether or not they had been involved in this crime.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Alex Tomlin worked as a reporter for a local TV station.

[Alex Tomlin]

The case was a little bit cold at this time and we got a call. Zane, she's willing to talk to you.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Cherie was on the defensive and wanting to publicly clear her name. So she scheduled an interview with Alex.

[Alex Tomlin]

Cherie offered to show me the home where her parents had lived and had been murdered.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Alex met Sheree at her home and interviewed her just steps away from where Lloyd, Dixie and Steven were murdered.

[Alex Tomlin]

I remember distinctly being in the kitchen and we were talking about her brother Stephen. And you know, when it, when the autopsy came out, he had held about a dozen or so blows, I think about maybe 17 blows. And I remember her talking to me about how he was such a big guy, that he was kind of a teddy bear, but he was such a big guy. And it's such a weird sensation where you're standing in someone's Kitchen, and you're seeing marks on the floor, and, you know, their body had been there. And, you know, she cried a lot during that interview, understandably. But really thinking about this young man coming out who didn't really have the cognitive ability to understand what was happening, you know, very much still a child kind of in a man's body, and to have that many blows to him, my only thought in that moment was he must have been trying to protect his parents. He must have been really scared. He must have really fought back. And that was just so sad. It was so sad to think about those final moments and what that must have been like for him, either knowing that he was dying or knowing that something had happened to his parents. It was just really traumatic standing there and knowing this is where he died, and he died in such a violent way.

[Cherie Ortiz]

With the cameras rolling, Alex asked Sheree about the investigation.

[Alex Tomlin]

I believe they're going through it with tunnel vision, just specifically focusing on us instead of the real people or per. I know it had to be people.

[Cherie Ortiz]

How could one person do that?

[Alex Tomlin]

So it left this very weird sensation in the community where some people were still speculating, other people really believed them. Why would they do this?

[Cherie Ortiz]

Sheree said her parents had life insurance, but she could not collect that money since she and her husband were considered suspects. And without that money, Cherie said, they couldn't pay their bills and worried their homes would be foreclosure.

[Alex Tomlin]

So it was really this sense from her of trying to advocate for herself, but advocate for her parents and her brother to say, I need to know who killed them, and at the same time, I need people to know it wasn't me. And so that was really what the conversation centered around.

[Cherie Ortiz]

We could lose everything my dad worked so hard for.

[Alex Tomlin]

I actually saw, like, marks on the floor and different things like that where this had happened. It was a really horrific experience.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Something has to give.

[Alex Tomlin]

I really do have hope. I know this is going to get solved.

[Cherie Ortiz]

With tears in her eyes, Cherie then looked into the camera to try to clear her name and her husband Jesse's as well.

[Alex Tomlin]

We had nothing to do with it.

[Cherie Ortiz]

My God.

[Alex Tomlin]

That was my mom and my dad and my little brother.

[Cherie Ortiz]

It was no secret that the two were being looked at in the Tribble murder, but were they that desperate for money that they would murder their own family? Paul Chavez investigated.

[Detective Alex Cross]

If you don't investigate Jesse and Shervee to the fullest, you make a very easy argument for a defense attorney to create doubt in a jury's mind, and that's exactly what have happened if we had not followed up on all of the red flags that came up during the course of the investigation.

[Cherie Ortiz]

But as the investigation dragged on, Sheree shifted the blame back on the state police. She claimed that they botched the investigation and said casino security guards or even children could have done a better job. Against the advice of law enforcement, Cherie even set up a PO Box where people could anonymously submit information about who might be responsible. A year after the murders, the police promised a press conference to share some breaking news on the case. But that press conference never happened.

[Detective Alex Cross]

There was a lot of leads that came in that were followed up on, but none of them panned out.

[Cherie Ortiz]

A billboard even went up along a local highway with a picture of Lloyd, Dixie and Stephen that offered a $1,000 reward for information. But still there were no arrests.

[Detective Alex Cross]

That was the hardest part of this case for me, was knowing that we have not been able to bring justice for this family.

[Cherie Ortiz]

And it wasn't just Cherie who was pressuring the New Mexico State Police. Here's TV reporter Alex Tomlin.

[Alex Tomlin]

There was an incredible amount of pressure from that small knit community, but also the surrounding communities and pretty much all of the state saying you've got to find who did this. You could not take a family who more people said nice things about and have a more awful thing happened to them. I mean, they are bludgeoned to death with a pickaxe.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Publicly, the police didn't reveal much about other potential suspects. But behind the scenes, it was a different story. Aside from Sheree and her husband Jesse, investigators interviewed numerous people. Then, 16 months after the murders, a local 23 year old woman named Ashley Roybal got arrested. While she's in custody, she tells the police something astonishing. Is it okay to call you Ashley?

[Alex Tomlin]

All right.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

I understand that you know some details.

[Alex Tomlin]

I know who did it.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Ashley tells detectives that she knows who killed Lloyd, Dixie and Stephen Ortiz.

[Alex Tomlin]

It isn't until Ashley Roy Ball gets in trouble that all of a sudden she's willing to tell police what happened.

[Detective Alex Cross]

I'll just let you go ahead and.

[Sloan Glass]

Tell me the story.

[Alex Tomlin]

It was almost like they the answer everyone had been waiting for.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Ashley Roybal kept quiet for 16 months. During that time, Cherie juggled losing her mom, dad and brother while being looked at by everyone as a suspect. All while she couldn't collect their life insurance money and was scared she'd lose everything. But now, 16 months later, Ashley was finally ready to talk.

[Detective Alex Cross]

And this was the turning point in the investigation.

[Cherie Ortiz]

But would anyone believe Ashley there's things.

[Alex Tomlin]

That kind of don't match up. There's shifting stories.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

We just want the truth.

[Cherie Ortiz]

They say the wheels of justice move very slowly, and in this case that would prove to be an understatement.

[Alex Tomlin]

And I remember thinking, oh God, here we go again. This poor family has been through the ring error.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

I would have never suspected that it was going to come down to this.

[Cherie Ortiz]

Find out what Ashley says really happened that night on part two of the Father's Day murders. That's next time on American Homicide. You can contact the American Homicide team by emailing [e-mail] that's AmericanHomicidePodmail.com American Homicide is hosted and written by me, Sloan Glass and is a production of Glass Podcasts, a division of Glass Entertainment Group in partnership with I Heart Podcasts. The show is executive produced by Nancy Glass and Todd Ganz. The series is also written and produced by Todd Ganz with additional writing by Ben Federman and Andrea Gunning. Our associate producer is Kristen Melchiori. Our iHearti is Ally Perry and Jessica Krynchak. Audio editing and mixing by Matt D'Alvecchio Additional editing support from Nica Ruka, Tana Robbins, Britt Robicheaux, Dave Saya and Patrick Walsh. American Homicide's theme song was composed by Oliver Baines of Noiser Music Library, provided by My Music. Follow American Homicide on Apple Podcasts and please rate and review American Homicide. Your five star review goes a long way towards helping others find this show. For more podcasts from iHeart, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Sloan Glass]

Black Friday is coming and for the adults in your life who love the coolest toys, well, there's something for them this year. Bartisian is the premier craft cocktail maker that automatically makes more than 60 seasonal and classic cocktails each in under 30 seconds at the push of a button. And right now Bartisian is having a huge site wide sale. You can get $100 off any cocktail maker or cocktail maker bundle when you spend $400 or more. So if the cocktail lover in your life has been good this year or the right kind of bad, get them Bartesian at the push of a button. Make bar quality Cosmopolitans, Martinis, Manhattans and more all in just 30 seconds. All for 100 off. Amazing toys aren't just for kids. Get a hundred off a cocktail maker when you spend 400 through Cyber Monday. Visit bartesian.com cocktail that's B A R T E S I a n.com cocktail now streaming on Prime Video.

[Detective Alex Cross]

You can call me Detective Alex Cross.

[Sloan Glass]

Based on characters created by James Patterson.

[Detective Alex Cross]

We have to catch this serial killer.

[Cherie Ortiz]

I don't kill for fun.

[Sloan Glass]

And created by Ben Watkins.

[Detective Alex Cross]

Ms. Killer thinks he's the smartest guy in the room.

[Sloan Glass]

Aldis Hudge is DC's funnest Alex Cross. If we don't find him soon, we.

[Cherie Ortiz]

May never have another chance. Clock's ticking.

[Alex Tomlin]

You think you can stop him?

[Cherie Ortiz]

I know I can. Cuz I know him Than he knows himself.

[Sloan Glass]

Cross A new original series only on Prime Video. Watch now.

[Pastor John Trujillo]

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[Alex Tomlin]

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[Pastor John Trujillo]

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[Alex Tomlin]

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[Pastor John Trujillo]

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[Alex Tomlin]

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[Pastor John Trujillo]

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[Alex Tomlin]

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[Pastor John Trujillo]

That's livenation.

[Alex Tomlin]

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