I Am a Stalker (2022) s01e01 Episode Script

1
[man] I never really looked up
the definition of the word "stalking"
but the law clearly states
it's two or more unwanted contacts.
And I guess that's what I was doing.
Unwanted contact.
They didn't want me around,
but I didn't wanna listen,
so I'm gonna be around.
[woman] He should have been stopped.
He could have been stopped and wasn't.
It's the same pattern that he had
over and over and over.
There are so many times
that he could have killed me.
[Thompson] I've been charged
with 13 felonies in my life
and only been convicted of five.
I'm always able to get out of it.
I had it in my mind,
and I actually convinced myself,
I could do whatever I want
and get away with it.
[man 1] I'd rather be considered
a murderer than a stalker,
you know what I mean?
[woman] I wanted the intensity
of, like, of her feeling watched.
[man 2] Anybody can be a stalker.
[man 3] It's all boogeyman talk.
[man 4] I'm still that crazy. [chuckles]
[Thompson] I had no right
to, uh do what I did.
There was a lot of things I could have
done differently, and I didn't.
Ultimately, it comes down to my choices.
I choose to respond the way I responded.
I may not understood it then,
but I do understand it now.
My name is Daniel Thompson. I was charged
for aggravated stalking back in 2008.
I wish I can go back and listen
to the people that told,
"Hey! Forget about her. Let's go!"
I wish I would have listened.
[pensive guitar music playing]
I grew up in northeast Kansas,
out in the country.
Everybody knew each other,
everybody knew each other's kids.
It was a kind of lifestyle
that nobody locked their doors
and didn't have to worry about anything.
[birdsong]
I didn't have a lot of friends growin' up.
I had a hard time socializing with people,
'cause I didn't trust people.
I think I was 12 or 13
when I was finally diagnosed with PDD,
Pervasive Development Disorder,
part of the autistic scale.
But other than that,
I I lived in a good home.
[Thompson] Angie was vibrant.
She was happy. She was outgoing.
Every time I always saw her,
she was always smilin'.
Plus, she had, um
she had, uh, green eyes,
and I like green eyes. [laughs]
But her stepdad found out how old I was.
And again, she was 15 and I was 17.
And he says, "There's too much
of an age gap. Come back a year."
And I actually called her a year later.
And she couldn't believe it
that it was like a year later,
'cause when she got my phone call,
she was all excited.
[woman] I first met Daniel
in my freshman year of high school.
He was my first real boyfriend.
My name is Angelyn,
and I am a stalking survivor.
I had spoke to Daniel on the telephone
and had kind of told him where I lived.
And next thing I know, here comes this
truck down the road, and it was him.
I never had experienced someone
where you just kind of talked to them,
and all of a sudden, they just show up.
I really liked him.
When we first met,
it wasn't, at that time, anything unusual.
It was just a normal relationship
at the beginning.
And then, as time went on,
he became more possessive.
He would call all hours of the night.
If he couldn't reach me by phone
or have a friend get a hold of me,
he would turn up wherever I was.
And it got to the point
that he was constantly there.
That, um, my parents started putting,
like, rules on the amount of time
he could be there.
He would sneak in through the doggy door
at my mom and dad's house.
And I would wake up
with him, um, standing over me,
like, waving a dollar bill to wake me up.
But I felt at the time that that was love.
I mean, I know now that's not.
But at the time, when you're getting
that type of attention and, you know,
he wants to spend time with you
and take care of you and all of that
I didn't think it was anything weird
at the time.
[Thompson] Angie and I had
three boys together.
And we moved to St. Joe, Missouri,
where it's close to her family.
Yeah, we were really, really happy.
But then I'll do dumb stuff,
she'll do dumb stuff.
'Cause we're young and I like
that freedom to go out runnin' around.
And and that's what I did.
I'll stay out all hours of the night.
And it just caused aggravation, arguments,
to the point where
I literally snapped.
[Angie] The violence started
with little things.
Like, I wasn't allowed to sleep in the bed
when he was mad.
So he would kick me off the bed
and onto the floor.
Or he would get angry and throw things.
And just kind of pushing and shoving,
that kind of thing.
But as time progressed, it got worse.
He would beat me in my head, like,
my hair, to where you can't see bruises,
or suffocate me with pillows.
It got to the point that I would open
the curtains on, like, the living room,
and I would write on the window, "Help,"
in hopes that, you know, someone
someone would notice and call.
No one ever did.
This is just a picture
of how little they were at the time.
This is our This is my oldest,
and then this is Dan and I,
our first baby together.
As I went through looking for photos,
every photo that I found had
almost a negative
a negative memory with it.
This photo is the apartment.
Um it has my little boy in it,
and I was pregnant
during that time period.
There was one time I thought I had heard
a noise in the back of the apartment.
And I get to the end of the hallway,
and he's there.
He came in through this door,
and my son was in this bedroom
in his crib,
and I remember running from the bedroom.
I was able to get in here
and get to the crib and pick him up.
And by the time I got back
to this doorway, he had a hold of me.
He strangled me.
And he strangled me to the point, um
I remember my son's feet
hitting the ground,
and I remember going to my knees,
and it was all black.
And when I finally came to,
he was pulling my hair
and dragging me into the kitchen,
where he sat with a butcher knife
to my throat.
There was so many instances like that.
He comes in,
beats the crap out of me, and leaves.
And, again, you know,
you call the cops, but he's already gone.
[birdsong]
[Angie] There's no protection
with a restraining order.
It's just a piece of paper.
He would always come back.
He always found me. It didn't matter.
He always found me.
He might be under a car.
Or in your back seat,
or under a desk at work one time.
He always knew where I was.
If he didn't know where I was,
he was able to find out where I was.
I think he was stalking me
because he saw me as a possession.
I was his. He had total control over me.
[Angie] I met Brandon,
and ended up moving into this house,
and I had the kids.
But I knew that it's not over.
[Thompson] I was trying everything I could
to salvage the marriage.
And then I found out
she was with another guy,
and it did not settle with me at all.
How could she do that?
We have children together.
In in my mind, I was always thinkin',
"I'm gonna end up killing her."
"I'm I'm seriously
gonna end up killing her."
[crickets chirping]
[dog barks]
[Angie] One night, we were at the house,
and we heard someone
walking on linoleum in the kitchen.
And, uh there was a really long hallway,
and Brandon saw Dan's shoulder.
So we knew Dan was in the house.
And I had clicked on the cellphone,
and he heard it come on.
And it took him a minute, but he ended up,
like, going out the front door.
The cops responded.
But they couldn't find him.
When the police
went through the basement,
they found a bag and gloves.
I had had a butcher block knife set
on the counter,
and there's a huge butcher knife missing.
It kind of makes me feel like he was
there that night for a purpose.
I remember being very angry
because when he broke into the house,
they find gloves, a bag,
and he gets charged with burglary
because he took a knife.
I mean, that's more than burglary.
He could have killed me.
I mean, he was on that line,
and if he had just gone a little further,
I wouldn't be here.
More should have been done.
[unsettling music playing]
[Thompson] I was angry at her.
It burned a hole through me
like battery acid.
And I don't handle emotions very well
because of my PDD.
Even though I knew it was wrong,
I didn't care,
because I didn't like the way I felt,
and I was gonna use my actions
to alleviate that pain.
That's when I broke in the house,
and that's when I got the knife.
I was really gonna do some harm.
And I think that if it went any further,
I would have crossed that line.
And when I only got eight years
out of it, I was like, "Pfft!"
"That's nothing."
[birdsong]
[Thompson] After I got out of prison,
I moved on.
I completely erased Angie
out of my memory.
[Thompson] Jennifer
When I first met her, I met her online.
And we kind of hit it off really good,
I mean, um
she came out of a real abusive,
bad relation
I mean, a nightmare.
So we had that understanding of
where we're from, and we bonded very well.
She was smart. She was a single parent.
And when you see that somebody
has that kind of responsibility
and knows what their priorities are,
that's what attracted me to her.
We didn't move in right away.
We kind of You know,
I did things for her kids,
and, you know, just stuff,
playing that role.
And, uh and then later on,
I finally moved in.
But then it got to the point
where she started getting controlling
in the relationship.
And I don't function very well
when people controlling me.
I don't like to be told what to do.
And, um
Uh
We got into an argument,
and then, basically, I moved out.
And I let my anger
trusting issues,
all that stuff, play a role.
[chime]
Hey, Jennifer, I wanted to call you to say
I'm sorry for what happened last night.
I don't hate you.
Okay?
I love you, bye.
I think what it is, is that
I have a hard time detaching myself
from that person
that I have emotional ties with.
- [chime]
- Jennifer, please talk to me, okay?
There's no harm in talking to me.
Just, please.
And I don't handle that too well.
You need to pick up the phone.
Quit this bullshit
and quit being a bitch all the time.
And if I can end a relationship
in some way of violence,
then maybe I can be able to detach myself
from the emotional ties.
I'm coming down right now,
and I'm gonna sit there at the house.
[suspenseful music playing]
[man] At 1:30 in the morning,
February 25th,
we got a call for a burglary in progress.
The call was not the first time
we had responded to this residence.
My name is Scott Hendrickson.
In 2008, I was a patrol officer
with the city of Bolivar, Missouri.
The victim informed us that the suspect
that had broken into her house,
was her ex-romantic partner.
She identified him as Daniel Thompson.
What was worrying me
with the pattern emerging
was the fact that he kept on coming back
on multiple times in the same day,
multiple days.
I had never seen
that level of persistence.
Up ahead on my right, this is the house
that Daniel Thompson broke into.
When we arrived on scene,
she was in a state of trauma.
She could barely speak.
He was on top of her, uh,
when he woke her from her sleep.
He had a knife at her throat, and, uh,
he covered her mouth with his hand.
A struggle ensued almost immediately.
During this struggle, uh
the suspect dropped the knife
and, uh, was choking her with both hands.
She found the knife that he had dropped,
and, uh stabbed him.
After being stabbed,
he fled the area on foot.
I did locate him a short time later
kind of, uh, curled up
and laying down on the pavement
behind a large propane tank.
And we called for an ambulance,
and, uh, he was loaded up in the ambulance
and taken to our local hospital.
[Hendrickson] He only got caught
when he got stabbed.
I believe that's the only reason
he didn't kill her.
When a person shows this level
of persistence,
he's communicating clearly
that he will stop at nothing.
[man] I don't think that probation
is appropriate for this.
Thompson entered Jennifer's house
and strangled
and held a knife to her throat.
That deserves far more punishment
and accountability than zero jail time.
My name is Matthew Huffman.
I am the chief public affairs officer
at the Missouri Coalition
Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.
[typing]
[Huffman] In looking over Thompson's
history of abusive and stalking behavior
with Jennifer and Angie,
the thing that stood out for me
is the same sort of behavior
pops up with each of these individuals,
showing a pattern.
It's starting with harassing phone calls,
keeping tabs of where the women
he was in a relationship are,
showing up at their house
constantly unannounced.
It involves strangulation of some sort.
It involves a knife to the throat.
That knife is something that comes up
repeatedly in his abusive behavior,
and oftentimes,
these abusive behavior patterns,
they will continue to escalate.
And that's why I don't think
that probationary measures
can really be considered
the end-all-be-all.
Probation, unless it is very strict,
constantly having check-ins
with that individual,
constantly working with them
to identify and correct
those abusive behavior patterns
that they have,
it's not exactly
going to solve or fix the issue.
Thompson has mental health issues
that absolutely need to be addressed.
People deserve help with that,
but mental illness is in no way an excuse
for violent and abusive behavior.
Oftentimes we talk about reform
and rehabilitation.
I don't want to say that those never work,
but in order for them to work,
that abusive individual has to want it to.
They have to recognize what they did,
and they have to want it to work for them.
In no way has he shown that
he understands what he has done is abuse.
So with Thompson out on probation,
I would be very concerned
for his previous victims.
But more than that, I'd also be worried
for any other potential person
he might be
in an intimate relationship with.
Given the opportunity,
I think that he would re-offend
and he would escalate in that violence.
[man] Give me your first name.
[bleep]
How long have you known Daniel?
[woman laughs] Aah
[sobbing] Three months, maybe.
[man] How'd you meet him?
[woman laughs]
Um [gasps]
The Internet.
My name is Mike Crocker.
In 2010, I was a detective
with St. Clair County Sheriff's Office.
[birdsong]
First time I've been back here,
and it definitely brings up some memories.
When I arrived on the scene,
the female that was there was hysterical,
screaming, basically uncontrollable.
There was blood all over the place.
There was a male laying on the bed
with a stab wound to the chest.
The female told us that somebody came in
and killed the person
that she was in bed with that night.
[Crocker] That was your boyfriend?
[woman] The one
that was layin' dead next to me?
[sobs] I just met him.
[Crocker] Okay. What was his first name?
[woman] James.
- [sobs]
- [Crocker] You know his last name?
- [woman] Vail. V
- [Crocker] Vail?
[woman] V-A-I-L.
[sniffles]
[Crocker] During the interview,
she explained to us
that it was her ex-boyfriend,
Daniel Thompson,
that had broken into the house
and killed James Vail.
- [Crocker] When you went to bed
- [woman] Mm-hm?
[Crocker] was the door
to that house locked?
[woman] Yes. I locked the door.
James even double-checked it.
[Crocker] About how long
after you went to bed
did this happen?
[woman] It didn't seem like very long.
[gasping] I'm not sure.
[Crocker] Did you did you hear anything?
[woman] I didn't hear anything.
I didn't hear anything.
[Crocker] Okay.
[woman] He had to have been out there.
He had to have been watching us.
[sobs]
He probably stabbed him
with my frickin' knife.
[whispers] He's psycho.
[Crocker] She told me that she had been
in a relationship with Daniel Thompson,
but it went downhill rather quickly.
He had a bad temper,
and he was very upset
when she broke up with him.
He'd been stalking her and threatening her
since they had broken up.
He was constantly trying to find out
where she was at, who she was with.
She was scared of him.
Local police had been called down
to her house on two or three occasions.
We had a discussion with him about
carrying a knife down to [bleep] house
during the day prior to this murder.
[Crocker] When he was down at the house,
did he say anything to James then?
Like, "I'll get you, I'll cut you, you
son of a bitch, you mess with my woman"?
[woman] Nah. No. He just looked at him,
and you couldn't see
any color in Dan's eyes.
I don't know if it was 'cause he was mad
or what, but, oh my God.
He was furious.
I thought, "He's out to kill."
[Thompson] I was in a relationship
with her,
and she lied to me.
And I don't like to be lied to.
She was the target.
I didn't even know
this guy was even going to be there.
I didn't even know who he was.
I didn't know they were seeing each other.
I didn't even know his name.
But when I got in there,
he was just there.
And you're thinking,
everything, your emotions,
everything's racing a million miles
per second and all of a sudden, it just
Th It's that rush just starts coming,
and you feel it and it's just like,
"To hell with it."
And that's what happened.
[crickets chirping]
But it was
Since it was so pitch-black in there,
I misjudged my distance
and I ended up getting him instead.
[wind chimes tinkling]
I brought you a butterfly.
[woman] James' murder
could have been avoided.
Thompson was let go many times
throughout his years
of abuse and stalking of other women.
And all the stalking that he's done
in the past all led up to this.
My name is Bonnie Vail,
and I am the mother of James Raymond Vail.
He was murdered by Daniel Thompson.
I love you, son.
James had an amazing personality.
He was very bubbly, very enthusiastic.
He called that day, and I asked him
how he was doing, and he said,
"I'm having a really good time."
Said, "I met some really nice people
and we're havin' fun."
And he sounded really happy.
And, uh, those were
the last words I heard.
James' death made me so angry.
I wanted to find out about this Thompson,
because I wanted to see if he had
a history of abuse and stalking.
I just started looking at the Internet,
and public records,
and newspaper clippings.
And I pulled up several cases on him.
And every case was with a knife
and he had stalked or he broke in,
and then I realized this is a pattern.
He literally got slapped on the hand
many times,
and they just didn't wanna deal with him.
I wanted everybody to know
that this wasn't a one-time thing,
and I wasn't gonna give up
until my voice was heard.
I couldn't grieve
until after this man was put in prison.
He needs to stay behind bars.
[Angie] I remember seeing the case
and being very angry.
It shouldn't have gotten to that point.
The night that he broke into my house,
he had knives.
And Brandon could have been James
that night.
I think when someone
does something like this,
their whole history should be reviewed,
because it shows a pattern
and I just knew that I needed to help.
I remember getting a hold
of the prosecutor,
and I told them who I was
and what I had been through.
And she wanted us to come down
and talk at his sentencing hearing.
[Angie] I remember walking up
to get onto the stand,
and I remember his beady eyes
just glaring at me.
Like, he was so angry, you know?
But I didn't flinch.
I knew at that time that if I spoke out,
he was going to prison.
[Angie] I do not think
it's a fair sentence for what he did.
I don't understand how you can
possibly commit a crime like that
get life, and then be eligible for parole.
That's wrong.
I understand it's "eligible."
He may not get out.
But that also means he may get out.
And I worry for the victims
that have spoken out,
because if he gets out,
he's gonna be older.
No home, no job, no car, no life.
That's gonna make him angry.
And so I worry that if he were to get out,
it would be scary.
[birdsong]
[Bonnie] That was in 2010.
Earlier in that year, there was a victim
in March that he had attacked.
Because she said no,
he burned her apartment.
Mm-hm.
- Five
- [Angie] Bonnie and I are very close.
Tragedy brought us together, and I think
her story begins where my story ended.
[Bonnie] I'm constantly looking
to find anything that I can use
when the parole time comes
to show them that he's a danger to society
and he doesn't need to be on the streets.
He needs to stay in prison,
'cause he got life.
But in the United States,
Missouri, it's not life.
It's 25 years, maybe.
For him to be released early
is just wrong.
- There will be new victims.
- [Bonnie] Yeah.
[Angie] There will be other people,
because he doesn't stop.
- He hasn't been stopped.
- [Bonnie] Mm-hm.
[Thompson] Angie, she is my nemesis
to the day I die.
I thought I was over with her.
I really thought I was.
And she reappeared.
I don't believe
that she'll ever leave me alone.
I think what it is, maybe she was scared.
She'll never forget that night,
and I I think
that she probably lived in fear.
I don't hate her.
I don't
I don't hold anything against her,
because she was the
She was the woman I loved.
And I hurt her.
And I still live with that to this day,
and I still think about her.
I mean, uh
You know, they always say the first
marriage is the one you always want back.
And I wish I had that back.
And and I know I'll never get it back.
You don't know
what it's like to take a human life.
It's it's nothin' like they show on TV.
It will haunt you. You'll never forget it.
I'm not proud, what I did.
I hate what I did.
[geese calling]
I take responsibility for my choices.
I'll never blame somebody else
for my choices that I made.
But I want people to believe
that people can change over time.
I don't want people to hate me. I don't
Uh, I You know, uh
I'm a human being. I'm not an animal.
[birdsong]
[Angie] If Dan were to say
that he was a changed person
because he took some classes,
or found religion,
or just changed on his own,
there is no reason to believe that.
If he were to change,
he would have done it a long time ago.
I think he says what he says
to try to manipulate the system.
I think he will reword and rework things
in order to make the system
see him as he wants to be seen.
But he's not a changed person.
I absolutely think that if he was let out,
he would do it again.
There's a pattern,
and that pattern hasn't been broken.
And I think it's important
that everybody sees that.
[emotional string music playing]