My baby. When can I hold her? >> This is the mother of 25-year-old Sarah Harris finding her [music] daughter dead. >> I wish she felt like this. What is all this? Is this for her? >> Is this all from them doing stuff to her? The state of the room [music] and Sarah's body point to a self-inflicted overdose. And as the weeks go by, everyone begins to [music] accept that as the truth, until one accidental discovery turns this case into a murder investigation. And as investigators revisit the events from the day Sarah died, they begin connecting [music] the clues, eventually uncovering not just a killer, but a highly concerning [music] past and a form of homicide. so cruel that fewer than 1% [music] of killers ever receive it. >> You kind of have an idea as to why we're here. This is all part of investigation into the deficits. It happened at your house. It's the early morning hours of January 26th when 911 dispatch in Maryland receives a call from a distressed man claiming he's just found his girlfriend unresponsive in his living room. >> Montgomery County 911. What's the address of the emergency? >> Hi, this is uh James. >> She's in the living room with compressions and she's not breathing. >> Okay. [laughter] It's difficult to make out exactly what he's saying, but one thing is clear. His [music] girlfriend isn't breathing. Units are dispatched immediately and arrive at the home moments later, unaware that the case they're walking into is far more complicated and far darker than just a medical emergency. As the officer walks into the house, the first thing that can be heard is the metronome medics used for CPR on the patient. As long as it can be heard, that means there's a hope to save the life. >> Who are you, sir? >> James Ryan. >> I'm her boyfriend. >> This is James Ryan, an owner of the local oral clinic and the 911 caller. And on the floor lies Sarah Harris. First responders find her surrounded by syringes and a tourniquet wrapped around her arm. To them, the cause seems obvious. An apparent drug overdose. With no pulse detected, medics begin CPR while officers turn to James, the grieving boyfriend, [music] hoping he can explain what led to this moment. Can >> Can we go somewhere and talk? Yes, please. >> Where can we go and talk? Is there a living room or something over here? Okay. Why don't you have a seat, sir? >> Okay, I understand. [crying] Oh my god. >> So, what what's going on right now? >> Yesterday, we were watching TV and having Chick-fil-A for dinner, and I went upstairs to go to bed cuz it was late. When I came down this morning, she had the [music] couch. >> Okay. >> And she wasn't breathing. So I pulled her off and started doing chest compressions and called 911. >> So you So last night you went to bed and she stayed on the couch. What time was that? >> It must have been 11 12:00 at night. >> Did she work anywhere? She used to work with me, but she stopped working a long time ago because she couldn't work anymore because she's so sad for her her brother [music] her brother last week. >> James admits he knew Sarah was taking drugs and explains it by saying she'd been stealing them from his clinic even after he fired her. At first, nothing sounds suspicious, but it forces detectives to confront a difficult question. How was James letting this happen? It's a question that will matter far more later, but for now, detectives focus on understanding the events leading up to Sarah's death. And that's when a first subtle sign suggesting that something isn't quite right would appear. Did she take something? Is that >> I think she did. Yeah, we went to my office. I'm an oral surgeon. We went to my office yesterday after the met. >> What type of drugs? >> Do you think maybe this was an accident? >> I think so. Yeah. I don't know. I hope so. >> Notice how for a moment James' grief disappears only to return a second later. At the time, officers don't [music] think much of it. But what they don't know is that this won't be the last time something about this scene feels off. For now, though, police accept the simplest explanation, a heartbreaking self-inflicted overdose. But then, [sighs] suddenly, the only sound keeping James' hope alive, the CPR metronome, goes quiet. As medics approach, the truth hits him, causing James to collapse into a devastating breakdown. She hospital or is this ever happened? She too much. >> Yeah, she did. She's taking it too much before how [snorts] long ago? >> Maybe 2 3 months ago. >> Unfortunately, I have to [laughter] say come back to us. >> [snorts] >> As medics confirm Sarah's death, James breaks down completely. Up to this point, nothing seems unusual for an apparent overdose, the house slowly goes quiet, and investigators begin documenting the scene and preparing Sarah's body for transport. And then everything changes. Sarah's mother arrives, walking straight into the worst moment of her life, unaware that she is about to give detectives a clue that would soon change everything. [laughter] My baby, my baby, please my baby. Oh, I don't think you want TO SEE HER. >> I WANT TO SEE HER. I JUST LOST my boy. I want to see my baby. >> You need to calm down if you want to see her. >> I would let you see her if you would calm down, but I need to step back. >> I will be my girl. Please let me see my [laughter] I can't >> Oh no. No. I didn't want my baby. Please let me have my [laughter] baby. >> Through her grief, Tina reveals that she had just lost a son the year before. Beyond making this moment even more devastating, it gives detectives their first real insight into Sarah's emotional struggles and a possible reason behind her overdose. >> Oh my god. [screaming] >> Is that true? >> Yeah, we just My brother just passed away. >> When did this happen? When did this happen? this morning. >> When this morning >> we got the call around 6:50 a.m. >> I wish she felt like this just >> as far as I know. Yes. >> When the baby >> when I when I uh got here, the medics were here and they were performing CPR. As Sarah's mother, Tina, grieavves, officers explain what they found so far. When they mention the syringes at the scene and confirm none of them came from paramedics, something clicks for her. In the moment, she realizes something detectives can't yet explain. And what she does next will give them a clue that will later change everything. >> What is all this? Is this for her? >> Is this all them doing stuff to her? >> No. No. No. That was already Miss nail here. What's the nail? What's the nail? Lift the nail, please. What's the nail? That's the nail. >> Tina's sudden reaction catches everyone off guard. She walks [music] straight over to James and begins striking him, and officers have no idea what triggered it. Her outburst quickly becomes yet another sign that something about this scene isn't adding up. [music] And while at this point nothing points to anyone being involved in Sarah's death, that would change the moment investigators uncover their first major hint, a discovery that will set off a chain of revelations, [music] ultimately revealing the true horrors behind Sarah's death. But before any of that, Tina seemingly begins leaning into a different explanation that Sarah's death was a self-inflicted overdose, pointing to the struggles her daughter had been dealing with. But if that's what she believes, why did she go over and hit James just moments earlier? That contradiction doesn't make sense to the investigators. They don't understand it yet. But as investigators uncover more details, this moment starts to make sense. Did she just didn't because the Christmas no and this is my [laughter] son's that just came out and she could not she could not take my tongue to Tina begins to echo James' belief, possibly thinking that Sarah may have been using drugs to cope with her brother's death. So far, James' version of events shapes the entire direction of the investigation. But the truth inside this house is far more complicated than anyone realizes, and soon investigators will learn why. Days go by with nothing suggesting foul play. No suspects, no clear involvement, just a tragic end to a young life. But behind the scenes, procedures continue. Because Sarah was believed to be stealing drugs from James' clinic, the DEA prepares to review his practice, and worst, he might face fines or lose his license. What no one realizes is that something far more significant is about to surface. Along with the autopsy, Sarah's samples were sent for toxicology, and what they reveal shocks everyone. When the toxicology comes back, investigators notice details they can't ignore. The drugs aren't the surprise. [music] James already claims she stole them, but the way they were administered raises new questions. The injection sites don't match self- injection. The depth is controlled, and there isn't a single defensive mark on her body. One detail after another falls into place until the medical examiner's final assessment. Sarah had been injected while she was unconscious. With this discovery, the case shifts from a self-inflicted death to a homicide investigation. Detectives now suspect someone else administered the drugs. And with James being the only other person home, he becomes their primary focus. But suspicion isn't enough. They need proof of who injected Sarah while she was incapacitated. And for weeks, they find nothing. Over a month after Sarah's death, investigators are still stuck. No concrete evidence ties James to the fatal injection. Then, just as the case stalls, something unexpected happens. Sarah's sister, Rachel, walks into the police department carrying the evidence detectives desperately need the day before. Rachel was sorting through Sarah's belongings when she found her laptop. [music] She guessed the password, logged in, and opened Sarah's Facebook messages. What she finds stops her cold. A flood of conversations between Sarah and James. Messages encouraging her drug use, telling her how much to take, how often, and the most disturbing one, proof that James had injected her while she slept on at least one earlier occasion. Rachel hands investigators a 200page catalog of messages, a complete timeline of Sarah's decline. And while it doesn't prove James injected her the night she died, it confirms he had done it before and had been knowingly supplying her with powerful drugs. For detectives, this is finally enough. 2 months after Sarah's death, investigators track James down, confronting him in a parking lot. the same man they now believe was central to the chain of events that ended Sarah's life. >> Yeah, sure. >> James is immediately brought to the police station and taken into an interrogation room. At this point, detectives already have more than enough evidence to charge him, but they still need to understand why. Why was he supplying Sarah with such powerful drugs? And did he have any role in the injection that ultimately ended her life? But when the questioning begins, James' reaction couldn't be more indifferent. Cigarette make you feel better? >> Mhm. Good. So, you kind of have an idea as to why we're here. >> I don't actually because I think um been in my attic for the past 5 months. >> Okay. So, we're here. We're This is all part of investigation into the deficier Harris. Okay. >> Happened at your house. Okay. Um so, we've been to the We went to the office, went to your home. Okay. It's all part of the investigation. Okay. So, we know what we know. Okay. We don't know what your side of it. So what I want to do is give you the opportunity for us to have a dialogue to just kind of talk about what led up to that. Um so what can you tell me about January 26th? >> Um so I have been arrested. Um, I think a dialogue would have been um I would have been more immunable to a dialogue uh had I not been arrested. >> Okay. >> So, I think I would like to have an attorney present. >> Okay. >> Before he's led away, a DEA agent steps in. What James doesn't realize is that investigators have already torn through his clinic [music] and poured over every page of his records. And this agent is about to make that unmistakably clear. >> Please introduce myself. I'm Samantha Marris. I'm with the DEA. I'm a diversion investigator. Um, part of my job is the pharmaceutical industry. We license you, as you know. Um, we regulate the security of the controls. We regulate the record keeping, the controls, everything like that. So, I don't know if you're aware, your drugs were not secure at your facility. We just opened a cabinet. Your records were very disorganized. they were hard to manipulate and see what you actually order, what you didn't order, things like that. I didn't see any inventories and things like that. So, at that point, you know, and what situation is going on today with your arrest, you know, we have to ask for your licenses. >> Thank you. And so this means that you cannot prescribe, order, dispens, or minister any control substances. >> The interrogation ends and James is charged with secondderee depraved heart murder, a charge that doesn't require intent, only that he knew his actions could kill Sarah and continued anyway. According to an interview with Tina, James once claimed during a drunken conversation that he first noticed Sarah when she was just 14 and would later take his kids to the toy store where she worked so he could see her. Prosecutors point to Sarah's rapid weight loss, the long sleeves hiding fresh tracks, and the night her family found her high in a room littered with syringes. They argue James kept her dependent by stealing drugs from his clinic and continually encouraging her to use them. The jury sees the pattern [music] and finds him guilty. James Ryan is sentenced to 45 years in [music] prison, a conviction made possible not just by detectives, but by Sarah's sister, who refused to let the truth stay buried.