233. The Infamous Case of Darlie Routier
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That's N-O-O-M dot com. You're listening to an Ono Media podcast. Hey, everybody. Welcome back to the podcast. This is Murder With My Husband. I'm Peyton Morland. And I'm Garrett Morland. And he's the husband. And I'm the husband. We got to give you a big, chunky thank you for...

Selling all our merch out. Selling all our merch out. It's gone like the freaking wind. And honestly, I think it's because it is the best drop that we've had as far as quality and wearable. It seems that you guys really do like the basics and wearable and having things that are a little more simple.

Public friendly. Public friendly. So we will keep that in mind. Both. And we're not just talking about murder with my husband. Also Peyton's ITD sold out.

as well wait if you're listening to murder with my husband right now and you don't know i have a solo show called into the dark it's true crime with a little bit of ghost hauntings dark spooky everything mysterious and creepy this is true and it's really good you should go check it out i'm proud of payton she's in a really really good job over there thank you again it's into the dark

It's my solo show. And if you didn't know, now you do. And if you want a bonus content, that means all of these shows ad free. It means bonus episodes twice a month, full length episodes. Check out our Patreon. Check out Apple subscriptions, Spotify subscriptions, anything. You can have all that for a low price of, I don't know. Go check it out.

Anyways, that's what we got going on. I just got back from the gym and I hate to say it, but I'm not going to lie. I'm getting a little bit bigger. I just feel like complimenting myself because it's okay to love yourself and compliment yourself. Yeah. You tell them. Is this your 10 seconds? I don't know if it's my 10 seconds, but it feels like it should be my 10 seconds. Okay. Keep going. Well, Peyton and I went to Vegas. We got drunk, blacked out on the street and ended up... No. No.

We went to Vegas. We went to the Bruno Mars concert. We had a good time. It was actually really, really fun. We spent money. That was sure enough. But we did it anyways because life is too short to die with a bunch of money in your savings. You know what I'm saying? Yeah.

Hot take right there. No, I'm good at saving. I understand all that. We have money safe. I'm just saying I don't want to die with all this money in my bank account. So you got to calculate it just right. It was a good time. Peyton and I had fun. Peyton, if you aren't following us on Instagram, we're Peyton on Instagram. Peyton looked incredible. She had, I don't know, you're gonna have to go look. She looked really pretty.

She looked really sexy in some of her photos, so go check them out. I don't know if I can say that on the podcast, but I just did. It's your podcast. It's my podcast. So we had fun. Honestly, Bruno Mars concert, we hung out. I actually really do enjoy going because Peyton and I love good food, like good food, expensive food. So it's fun to like splurge and spend money on that. And yeah.

That was our Vegas trip. I am going to let you know right now that we went to Zach Bagans Haunted Museum. Oh my gosh, I forgot about this. And it's a three-hour tour with...

Very intense. Very dark. I didn't know what to expect going in because I did no research. I thought there was going to be a little true crime memorabilia, a little haunting here, haunting there. No. We won't go back unless they invite us personally back. I basically entered a Conjuring movie is how it felt. But we are not going to be talking about any of those details here on the podcast because we talk about that stuff over on our Twitch stream.

We stream on Twitch every single Thursday, 5.30 p.m. PT. You need to join. It's live. We talk true crime. We talk our life. We watch videos. We react. We hang with chat. We listen to music. And we talk Zach Bagans Haunted Museum. So check that out. I forgot about that. Good catch, Peyton. We have a lot to tell. We do have a lot to tell. So we will talk about that. Today's Wednesday while we're recording.

So we're going to be talking about it tomorrow. You know what? We'll save it for the next stream. So if you're listening to this, you can go listen. You can go listen this Thursday. We will talk to you about everything that happened in the haunted museum. Love you all. Thank you for supporting us. And let's hop in to today's case. Okay, you guys, before we get into the episode, I do need to give you a trigger warning. This episode features discussions of violence against children.

children and child death. So if that is not something that you are interested in listening to, it's going to be a heavier one. Just go back and re-listen to your favorite episode. And then also suicidal ideation. So just please listen with care. It is not super graphic, not heavy detail. It's just there are going to be children victims. And I just want to give you a warning. Can't stand that. I cannot. I can't stand any of them, but I can't stand that.

People are so effed up. And you know what? I'm just going to say before I even get into my little spiel that I wrote, this case is a little bit more infamous. There are going to be people listening who have heard of this case. Okay, cool. I mean. Who don't live in the place that it takes place. Garrett won't know about it, but the name might sound familiar to you. Okay.

So no matter how many episodes of Murder With My Husband we do, there is one thing that we will never fully comprehend. And that is exactly what it is like to be in the shoes of a victim's family. If there's one thing I have learned and can certainly sympathize with, it's that people grieve in all different sorts of ways. But in today's world, when a case is so public, that grief can absolutely

at times, wrongfully be put under a microscope. Did you cry enough at the victim's memorial? Were you seen laughing in public? Did you write a book and profit off the loss? Every little thing you do may be judged by the court of public opinion. It

especially when you are already the subject of suspicion. And you know, we have seen this with like husbands who everyone thinks the husband did it until the real killer is found. Or we saw this more recently with the Brian Kohlberger, Idaho four murders where the living roommates were put under a microscope. And what we know so far is that they aren't suspects. And

And sometimes one wrong move, one unconventional expression of grief, no matter how big or small, can be weaponized against someone, whether they're guilty or not. Okay.

So in the mid 1980s, in the town of Lubbock, Texas, there is a 15 year old girl named Darlie Lynn Peck, who has just moved to town with her mother and her stepfather. And when her mother gets a job waiting tables at the Western Sizzlin', Darlie stops by to visit her frequently. The Western Sizzlin', it sounds like a small town version of Sizzler. It does. Um,

So teenager visiting her mom at work at the restaurant. And that is when Darlie catches the eye of a 17-year-old boy named Darren Routier.

Darren was taken with Darlie. I mean, they're 17 and 15. It is like meeting at the restaurant. He is taken by her bright blonde hair, her trendy clothes, and they start dating. And four years later, they tie the knot in the garden room at his parents' home in Texas. And the newlyweds, ready to spread their wings, decide to move together to the Dallas area, more specifically to Rollett, Texas.

And there, Darren started his own electronics company, which took off over the next few years. So by the early 90s, Darren and Darlie were able to afford their own little dream house. And as more money came in and the more they spent, they got a hot tub for the backyard, a Jaguar to drive to work, and then a 30-foot boat to take on the nearby lake. Holy, what are they doing for work? Mm-hmm.

They're an electronics company. Holy crap. Darren is sporting diamond watches and rings, and Darlie gets herself a pair of 36DD implants because everything is bigger in Texas. Damn. So by 1995, Darren's company was bringing in half a million in sales a year, and he himself was taking home $125,000. I'm out.

He's taking home $125,000 and you're telling me they're getting all that stuff? It's 1995. I guess that's true. That's going to be like maybe $250,000. That's a good point. Probably more, honestly. So, I mean, you're talking six figures in 1995. I know. Six figures in 1995 has changed a lot from... But even today, I mean... This isn't a finance podcast. Anyways, okay. Good to know. They have enough money to buy implants and a boat.

And a car. And a Jaguar. And a house. And a house. I mean, also. Hey, they're not like, you know, we've covered cases where there's people who are wealthy. Consumer debt, man. Consumer debt. But these people are doing good. Okay. So the Routiers were doing well for themselves, which was great because by that time they had expanded their family to include three little boys. Devin at this point in 1995 was five years.

Damon was four and they were soon going to welcome their new baby that they were going to name Drake. So Devin, Damon and Drake.

Darlie seemed to love just being the cool stay-at-home mom. She always welcomed the neighborhood kids over to play video games in their fancy Nintendo room. She would cook for her neighbors who were going through hard times. She was even said to have helped make a mortgage payment on a friend's house when they were fighting cancer. But in 1996, things actually hit a speed bump for the Routier family.

Business started to decline for Darren, who was behind on payments. And he actually owes the IRS thousands in back taxes. But Darren and Darlie managed to stay strong together and weather the storm. Darren started a new side business where he would take people out on his boat, which like if you don't want to sell the boat, a great option. If you're like, I can't get rid of the asset.

At least make it a little bit profitable. Yeah. Can't get rid of the acid.

And Darlie actually kept wearing the face of a perfect wife and mother. And as far as anyone can tell, Darlie and Darren's marriage was stronger than ever. So on June 5th, 1996, the now six-year-old Devin and five-year-old Damon were enjoying their summer break from school. So the 26-year-old Darlie actually let them stay up late playing in the hot tub while she tended to her now seven-month-old baby, Drake.

And she put the baby to bed in the crib in her room and Damon and Devin made a blanket fort in the living room where they fell asleep for the night. Sounds like a perfect summer night. And Darlie and her husband, Devin, stayed up talking till around midnight. And then Darlie said she was going downstairs with the boys. She said she couldn't sleep well with the baby stirring in the crib next to them all night. And she just preferred to keep an eye on Damon and Devin while Darren kept an eye on Drake.

And if you are confused, yes, this family has a lot of D names. - Full of Ds. - So she curled up on the couch next to the older boys who were sleeping in the fort and she fell asleep. But just before 2:30 AM on the morning of June 6th, Darlie woke up to any mother's worst nightmare.

Her middle son, Damon, was standing over her, five years old, saying, Mommy, Mommy. And that's when she says that she spotted a man fleeing her home through the utility room and into the garage. So in a daze, Darlie jumps up. She follows this stranger until she notices a knife on the floor. So she picked it up, looked down, and realized that she was covered in blood.

Her own blood. Darley's throat had been slit. Oh?

Holy crap. And she had no idea. No idea. Oh my gosh. So at this point, she rushes back to check on the boys only to find that both of them had suffered injuries too. So Devin, her six-year-old son was already dead. Oh my gosh. Damon was still breathing. So Darlie screams at the top of her lungs for her husband who rushes downstairs and calls 911. Now both he and- How is he screaming? How is she screaming?

I mean, I don't think her, like, trachea. It was just her throat had been cut. It wasn't a super deep cut. Yeah, yeah. It was just lucky, I guess. Well, I mean, I'm sure it still hurt, but, like, what else are you going to do? Your kids are dead and dying. Yeah, yeah. It surprises me. I mean, because...

He was obviously trying to kill her. Right. So Darren rushes down and helps dial 911. And both he and their seven month old baby Drake were unharmed and also unaware of what had happened downstairs. Like they just woke up to this, but within three minutes, police and paramedics had arrived to rush Darlie and five-year-old Damon off to the hospital. And

But devastatingly, Damon would not survive the ambulance ride. He passed away before they arrived, which means both sons, five and six year old, had been murdered. Hey everyone, we are getting into an ad. And if you didn't know, New Year's is fast approaching and it is time to get those resolutions in order. And my resolution, well, it starts with this. And

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So

So for the next two days, Darlie remains hospitalized. Aside from several bruises, she also had two stab wounds on her right forearm. But as we know, the cut on her throat was the most lethal. It actually come within two millimeters of her carotid artery. But Darlie survives her injuries. And once she was well enough, police are obviously eager to ask her why.

everything she remembered about that night because her two sons were murdered in the same room with her and her throat was slit. So still sedated at the hospital, Darlie tries to recount the events as best as she could.

The problem was, whether it was the drugs, the shock, or another reason, Darlie didn't give them all the details they were hoping for. She told them how she had slept downstairs with the boys that night, how she had woken to Damon standing over her asking for help, and how she had been

and then how she saw a man run out through the garage. And she remembered some of his description. She claimed the attacker was a white man with long hair in a baseball cap, T-shirt, and jeans. Oh, this is heartbreaking. But the police have a few problems with Darlie's account.

So for one, they couldn't understand how she didn't wake up until after the stabbings and that she had somehow managed to sleep through both of her son's attacks and her own throat getting slit. That she didn't even realize she was hurt until after she had chased the killer out of her home.

And there's also what Darlie mentioned on the 911 call. So Darren calls 911. And apparently in the midst of the chaos, she found it important to tell the operator that she had picked up the knife from the floor and put it on the counter. And police think this is weird because she's explaining why her prints would be found on the weapon. Oh, I'm going to be... Keep going. Which...

I'm going to be so pissed. She doesn't clarify that. Police just think that that's why she had mentioned this. That's a good thought. I don't think this would be the top of mind for most mothers on a 911 call. Yeah. Like, hey, I don't even think that they would mention that they moved the knife. You know what I mean? So police are like, it's a little weird, but how are you supposed to know? And then there's also a few other things police learn as they begin the investigation that seem like red flags too. Yeah.

Like apparently, one of the first officers to arrive at the crime scene said Darlie was holding a rag to her own bleeding neck while her son was bleeding out with stab wounds in front of her.

And when a nurse told her in the hospital that Damon had also passed, she exhibited a, quote, flat effect. She didn't burst into tears. She didn't scream. Nothing. They said, hey, your other son died. And she just kind of...

Sat there. But look, I think it's fair to say that no one ever knows how you're going to react in these situations. Shock can do some really wild things to the nervous system. And sometimes it takes time for those things to process, especially when you're like fighting for your life with your own injury. So I don't know that these witness statements are evidence of anything really other than a mother just dealing with the worst possible nightmare. But I will say that

Things begin to look worse and worse for Darlie, even as she recovers and more time passes. So the investigation continues. And over the next week, police questioned both Darlie and Darren three times separately. And investigators say Darlie's story changes every single time she is questioned. For starters, now that she is out of the hospital, she seems to recall the attack.

She says it happened differently to each person that she speaks to. So every different officer, she explains it differently. First, she claims she remembers struggling with the assailant on the couch. So at first she's like, no, I just woke up and he was running out of house. Now she's like, no, I do remember struggling with him on the couch.

And the next time she's like, no, we struggled in the kitchen. And then it's back to the couch. But he was running the knife over her face. All my faith and trust is completely gone from this girl. Though she says she only got a good look at him once he moved away from her, not while he was standing over her.

And here's the other thing that's pretty troublesome. Darlie said that she slept downstairs with the older boys because she would wake up to the slightest movement of her baby in a crib. Remember, this is what she explains. But didn't wake up to her kids being killed. Stopped. Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah. So police have to look for evidence of this intruder. I mean, they have to run with the story that the witness is telling them, which is there was an intruder. But do you? Because if she becomes a suspect... I mean, you got to investigate every option. Okay. You can't just narrow in on one because you're suspicious. Yeah. So...

Darlie says that he escaped through the utility room and out of the garage. And as far as they can tell, there is no blood in the garage. There's not even signs that someone went crashing through there on their way out. What they do find, however, is that there is a screen on the window in the garage and it is sliced open. So it looks like someone came in through here. Darlie says that he

But actually, it doesn't look like someone came in through here because the dust around the windowsill looks untouched. Almost like someone staged it.

The screen and then went, oh, there we go. Now it looks like someone came in here because if someone did crawl in through this window, you would think that the layer of dust would be disturbed because there was an obvious layer of dust and it was not touched. So detectives, they also say the way the slit is made on the screen is very odd. It's a T shape, which would have made it really small for a grown man to fit through.

There's also the fact that nothing is missing from the house, like nothing stolen whatsoever. So whoever broke in here just wanted to kill two little kids and the mom and then leave for no reason at all. And if this person did come into the home with the intention to kill, why wouldn't they have brought their own murder weapon? Because...

The murder weapon was one of the family's own kitchen knives. Yeah, I forgot about that part too. This is a kitchen knife that police later said had a small fiber on it. And it was one that appeared consistent to the fibers on that sliced window screen. Which you're like, okay, except for if they grabbed the knife while they were in the house...

How did they use the knife to slash the screen to get in? Right? So that actually tells you that someone slashed that screen from inside the house using the knife they got inside the house. Why? I mean, I think we know where this is going. Why? Why? Tell me why. I need to know why.

But, okay, let's get back to the blood for a second because Darlie's story actually doesn't line up with where investigators found bloodstains in this home. And I am going to tell you now that this crime scene

to this case is imperative. Like this is the biggest piece of evidence they have. They go so hard investigating this home. So when they do a luminol test, there is no blood in the utility room where Darlie said she pursued her attacker to where he ran through. And apparently they don't find any on the couch where Darlie says she was attacked, where her throat was slit. There is no blood there.

There is, however, a lot of blood in the kitchen sink and the stains looked smeared like someone had attempted to wipe them up with a towel after the fact. Now that combined with the fact that Darlie never mentioned to police that she had even gone to the sink while she was bleeding makes them wonder, is it possible that Darlie died?

attacked her sons so there was no blood on the couch no blood in the utility room no blood in the garage and then walked over to the sink and slit her own throat to make it look like she had been attacked as well oh my gosh i assume this yes first of all it is possible and second i assume this has to be for i would say money but the reason i would say no is because

It seems like it would be the husband if it was for money because it seems like he was the one running most of the businesses and in charge of the finances. I could be wrong. So I'm a little confused. Okay. Well, just to like from an outside perspective, pretend like from your case of someone who doesn't know this case. I mean, police are also suspecting that Darren did this.

He's upstairs. He could have come down and killed those kids and sliced his wife's throat and then... Yeah, but no. Oh, okay. Okay, anyways. The only reason I'm saying that is because of...

These are more context clues of how you're telling the story. We haven't really talked about Darren at all. We've kind of just been... See, now you're smiling a little bit and now it's confusing me. Oh, I'm not smiling. I'm just... I'm just... I just like hearing how your brain works. Okay. I didn't know if that smile was like, oh, you be just get freaking ready for this. No. Okay. Anyways, those are my thoughts on that. And...

Let's get back to the case. So they go to the doctors. They're like, hey, we've reached a point in this investigation where we're starting to wonder, is it a possibility that she slit her own throat? And doctors were like, oh.

okay yeah they could have been self-inflicted they say aside from the throat injury the stabs to her arms were very superficial so yeah it could it could be but there was one thing that the police found that does not make sense at all with any theory

It was a detail that actually strongly supported Darlie was telling the truth. - Oh, great. - In an alley about three houses away from the Routiers was a tube sock with a few drops of blood on it. And it included both of the boy's DNA and not Darlie's. - Oh my gosh. - So it does seem like someone ran out of the house.

I'm just railing on her, and if it's not her, I'm going to feel bad. So now I should probably shut my mouth.

Okay, and you have to think if Darlie had planted the sock there, like if she really went out, she killed her sons and then she went out as part of a cover-up, then why wasn't her blood on it as well? And also, okay, maybe she did it before she cut her own throat, but even then, like you just kill your boys and then run several blocks away? I mean, I guess it's true because, I mean, I know it's just, it's a dark podcast, so my mind goes there, but to kill your own kids is...

Next level. Also, I want to point out if your theory is, okay, she stabbed the boys, ran a couple blocks away, planted that sock to make it look like someone had actually run out, ran back, grabbed the knife, slashed the window, then went to the sink and cut her throat. Damon was still alive by the time the ambulance got there.

How in all that time, if that is actually how it happened, how is he still alive? Like, and why, if she killed them, would she call nine one one while one of the kids is still alive? I couldn't be a jury. You can convince me of anything.

I could be convinced of both sides. Well, so can the police because they're like, this just does not make sense. It doesn't. Because also like, how would she know the police would even find the sock? It was blocks away. They were just doing a routine search of the area and happened to stumble upon it. There's a chance they might've even not walked that way. So that combined with the fact that witnesses said Darlie would never in a million years hurt her children. Like every witness they talked to was like this Darlie wouldn't kill her children. Um,

And there was a dark car that had been seen casing the house in the weeks leading up to the tragedy. So police talked to the neighbors and they're like, no, there has been a dark car kind of hanging around this house. So police are like, oh, is Darlie telling the truth? After all, Garrett just said this. How could a mother do something so diabolical to her own children? It just does not make sense. Yeah.

But the problem was, it doesn't seem like Darlie knew she was being watched closely by investigators. Because at this point, they don't know where to turn. So they're keeping all eyes open. And when Devin's seventh birthday came around, it's eight days after the murders. It would have been his seventh birthday. Darlie made a decision that would call her entire character into question for the entire true crime community and police.

She and some friends and family, and this was like major news, like Nancy Grace level, okay? She and some friends and family went to Devin's grave to throw him a birthday party eight days after he was murdered and her throat was slit. And they take a video while they're throwing this party at the grave. They are singing happy birthday.

And someone is caught on the video and it happens to be Darlie. And she is literally dancing around spraying silly string on Devin's grave. Okay. It's just weird. Okay. I am trying to really think about this from a standpoint of that's one freaking insane and crazy to, um,

Grief and trauma can also make you do freaking crazy and insane things. So does it make sense? No. Could you maybe be possible if you had so much trauma? Sure. Well, so obviously Darlie is confronted about this because everyone is like, this is wildly inappropriate. Like this should not be happening. And Darlie claims no.

She tells people this is something she knew Devin would have wanted, that he was looking forward to his birthday, and this was her way of celebrating his life. Yeah, okay. Obviously, this does not look good to anyone watching that video when it is leaked to the news and the media. Everyone is like, whoa, your son was murdered eight days earlier, and your throat was slit, and your other son was murdered, and now you're dancing in...

spraying silly string and laughing and singing happy birthday on his grave. Okay. So what many people didn't know was at this point, Darlie is also on a cocktail of painkillers, antibiotics, and antidepressants. Okay. Which Garrett just said could have severely altered her sense of judgment. Like not only that, she's also in trauma. She's in crisis. If, if, if there's a lot going on, man, there's a lot going on.

So when asked to respond to the media about the video, Darlie said this, and I'm going to quote it exactly. She said,

I did the only thing I knew to do to honor him and give him all his wishes because he wasn't here anymore. But how do you know what you're going to do when you lose two children? How do you know how you're going to act? Yeah. In a quiet suburb, a community is shattered by the death of a beloved wife and mother. But this tragic loss of life quickly turns into something even darker.

Her husband had tried to hire a hitman on the dark web to kill her, and she wasn't the only target. Because buried in the depths of the internet is the Kill List.

A cache of chilling documents containing names, photos, addresses, and specific instructions for people's murders. The Kill List podcast is a true story of how one writer ended up in a race against time to warn those whose lives were in danger. Follow Kill List on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to Kill List and more Exhibit C true crime shows like Morbid early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus.

Check out Exhibit C in the Wondery app for all of your true crime listening. All right, you guys, we are going to jump into a sponsor real quick. And today's episode of Murder With My Husband is sponsored by BetterHelp.com.

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so darley's act of grief was seen as an act of guilt to the public at this point the public really starts to point the finger at her and kind of they believe that she murdered the kids and they don't even know the full case investigators were building against darley at this point they don't even know the evidence they have against her they are just so concerned about this video that they're like hey this is weird yeah but

But they're actually about to because just four days later on June 18th, 1996, Darlie Routier was arrested for killing her two sons. Okay. I know you are not being left out of the loop here. Police, all they have is the evidence that I have told you so far.

circumstantial evidence. There are no witnesses. There's no confession. And they only have a few tiny drops of Devin and Damon's DNA on the back of her nightgown. Oh, no. That's like they're saying, look, their DNA is on her, but obviously...

duh what they do have is a video of a mother grieving in a way that they don't see appropriate and because of the public outroar they decide they have enough this is a video that would ultimately play a major role in deciding darley's fate which is hard because i feel like we know more enough there's a lot to learn but we know a lot more about mental health and traumas and

I mean, we just do things that don't make sense because we're trying to handle our emotions. So that video is so hard because at that time, I'm sure it was a lot bigger deal than it would be now, to be honest. I still think it will. You do? I mean, not to name names, but there was like an influencer who got mildly canceled for dancing in the hospital to a little video while her kid was in the NICU. Yeah, I guess that's true. But I mean...

So I, Oh gosh, I think I have opinions too. Not to like draw similarities, but like the public does pay attention to behavior. Yes. The public, the public will always to an extent,

I mean, I guess you're right. It's never... I mean, I guess we do it with celebrities. Right. We do it with people all the time with everything. So, yeah, I guess you're right. I guess that makes sense. So she's arrested. And here's the thing investigators just could not put their finger on even when they arrested her. What motive did Dardley have for killing her two oldest children?

and leaving her husband and newborn baby upstairs untouched. Yeah, that doesn't make sense. As far as anyone knew, Darlie had no history of living with a prolonged mental illness. She had no history of sexual abuse in her past. She had zero run-ins with the law, no extramarital affairs. Yes, there was a life insurance policy on the boys. It only amounted to $10,000, which would barely even cover their funeral expenses. It can't be money because that's just not...

And I just want to tell you that the life insurance policy on her husband, Darren, was $800,000. So if she was going to do it for money, she would have killed her husband.

So confused. I'm so confused. So there was only one thing from Darlie's past that even hinted at any sort of violence. And I'm going to tell you what it is. It was a diary entry that she made on May 3rd, 1996. This is about a month before the murders. Amongst mostly upbeat entries, like positive diary entries, Darlie wrote one that set off alarm bells that would also be used against her. And it read, quote,

I hope that one day you will forgive me for what I am about to do. My life has been such a hard fight for a long time, and I just can't find the strength to keep fighting anymore. Okay.

According to Darlie, she was considering suicide that day. That's what she was writing about. And she actually wrote about this and then called her husband, Darren, who rushed home to comfort her. And like she reached out for help and he came home. So this diary entry actually has a reasonable explanation.

that has evidence before the murders happened. Darren saying, no, like this is real. Like she really was going to take her life that day. And according to Darren, that was the only time that Darlie had ever experienced suicidal thoughts that he was aware of. And Darlie claimed this was just due to her period, which hadn't returned after the birth of her third child. Her hormones were everywhere, you know, postpartum.

But by the end of the month, Darlie seemed to kind of be back to herself. The postpartum had kind of gone away a little bit. She and Darren even took the kids to a Renaissance fair at the end of May. The whole family dressed up.

Yes, Darlie was certainly eccentric, which may have been the character trait that urged her to even celebrate her late son's birthday with silly string. But for anyone who knew Darlie, even the neighborhood kids that used to come over and play Nintendo with her boys, Darlie just would never do something like this.

So Darlie's trial begins on January 6th, 1997. She was only being tried for the death of her son, Damon, because Devin's trial would be held separately. They decided to

treat them as two separate victims. And from what I could tell, this was a strategic move on behalf of the prosecution because if they can nail her for just Damon's death, she would be eligible for the death penalty. So in a nutshell, this was the theory that the prosecution was pushing at trial. So I'm going to tell you the evidence that they had against her. They claim that on the morning of June 6th,

Darlie cut the garage window screen with a knife from her own home to make it look like an intruder had entered the home. She then went back into the living room and stabbed her two sons. After doing this, she then ran down the street 75 yards away to place that tube sock there with her son's blood on it. She then came back, went over to the sink and slit her own throat and

Before screaming for her husband and them calling 911. So to try and prove that Darlie was the kind of mother that would do something like this at trial, they pointed to, remember they are in Texas in 1996, okay? So this is the prosecution's evidence. They mention her breast implants. Okay.

They mention the fact that she doesn't go to church. Oh, geez. They mention the fact that she went out with her girlfriends the night before, which was on Mother's Day, instead of spending it with her family. I'm going to say, if that's the criteria for a murderer, a lot of you listening are going to be murderers, okay? We're in trouble. The thing is, I bet to an extent, that is totally going to work where they're at, which is horrible.

Okay, and there is some circumstantial evidence. Yeah. But of course, the real kicker, the huge nail in the coffin is the video. They play it for the courtroom, for the jury. It's of her spraying silly string on her son's grave, celebrating eight days after he died.

But Darlie's defense team comes in and they make a really strong case for her. They call to the stand a psychiatric expert who interviewed Darlie for 14 hours after her arrest and said, Darlie is telling the truth about the events. So she gets arrested. A psychiatric expert comes in, interviews her for 14 hours. He goes on stand and says,

She's telling the truth. It was possible for her to forget what had happened that morning due to traumatic amnesia and then slowly start remembering the events, even if they were cloudy and she wasn't really sure what it was. They also called the chief medical examiner who said Darlie's wound was not only nearly fatal, it was deep enough that it came within two millimeters of her carotid artery. So they're basically saying that

She couldn't have done it herself because she was not. Who's going to cut themselves that deep? Like educated enough to know how to do it. Well, and also just like who's going to go that hard? Like who is going to cut their own throat that hard? Unless she was actually trying to. Right? Yeah. The chief medical examiner testifies that her wounds are,

are kind of not consistent with superficial and self-inflicted wounds that he'd seen in the past. He basically says, if this was a self-inflicted wound, it is the most hardcore self-inflicted wound that I have seen. But this kind of goes against what Darlie's doctors who treated her said. They said, yeah, it could be superficial. So, I mean, take it with a grain of salt. Then the

there was the knife. Apparently after it was tested for DNA, it only came back with Damon and Darlie's blood on it, not a drop of Devin's blood, which made the defense wonder there were two murder weapons. What happened to the weapon that killed Devin? They're wondering if maybe Devin

The murderer brought their own weapon and it somehow broke while killing Devin. And so then he went and grabbed one from the house to kill Damon and Darlin. This is so complicated. Because that house weapon does not have Devin's blood on it.

And did someone take the broken weapon home with them or just choose a different weapon in the middle? Maybe take it with them when they fled. They also brought up that window screen and windowsill. So another piece of evidence that was being used against her. Now, remember detectives found that dust on the windowsill had been undisturbed. They also found a blonde hair that they said was Darlie's. They're like, we found Darlie's hair on the windowsill.

When tested, however, that blonde hair belonged to one of the investigators at the scene. One of the crime scene investigators got their hair on that windowsill. It was not Darlie's hair.

And an expert said it actually makes sense that the dust would have been undisturbed because the window was only 10 inches off the floor, meaning someone could have easily climbed in and out without even touching the windowsill. Like they didn't need to jump up on the windowsill. They could have stepped in and out without leaving a trace, which I think if you are going to murder someone, you're going to try to touch as the least amount of things as possible. Then came one of the most

controversial pieces of evidence at this trial and it was the tube sock now the prosecution said darley planted this sock as a way to make it look like an intruder had fled the home after the attack and then dropped this sock but the defense said there was no possible way that could have happened and here's why

Damon was still alive when the paramedics showed up, but the medical examiner said Damon only could have lived through those injuries for a total of nine minutes after sustaining them. Darley was on the phone with 911 for almost six minutes, which means the 911 call was placed three minutes after Damon was stabbed. Yes, it would literally would have been impossible to go all the way there and plan to come back, yada, yada, yada, correct? Yes.

This is definitely not enough time for Darlie to stab her son, run 75 yards with his bloody sock, leave it in some alley, run back to the house, then cut her own neck. Because remember, there's no blood. So she would have had to injure herself after and then call 911 and Damon still be alive. So the defense kind of comes through with some solid evidence. They're like, how did she do this?

And look, if Darlie was planning this all out and she had staged the evidence as part of a cover-up, she made one crucial mistake. Because would she really have called 911 with one child still alive who could possibly go to the hospital and live and then say, my mother stabbed me? Why would you call the police with a witness still alive if you are a murderer? And if she was guilty...

wouldn't she have turned on the waterworks for nurses and doctors at the hospital when they came in and said your son died if she was guilty wouldn't she have been like oh my gosh not having that flat effect kind of shock reaction the defense says listen the way darley has been acting the silly string at the gravesite the not really reacting is

is not really the actions of a calculated murderer mom. Like she would have been smarter. She wouldn't have been just living and being in trauma and reacting how she was. In fact, it seemed to be the opposite. But here is where the defense messes up, which is going to happen at trial.

They allow Darlie to take the stand at her own trial, which never happens, okay? But they allow her to. And Darlie was not a persuasive witness in her own case. She would cry at odd times. The prosecution basically slammed her during cross-examination, calling into question her variety of stories, her inability to remember what had happened.

But again, the final nail in the coffin was showing the jury that Silly String video, which they reportedly played more than seven times in the courtroom during the trial. And what that video conveniently didn't show was that prior to spraying Silly String, witnesses come forward who were at the gravesite that day and say, Darlie was weeping uncontrollably over her son's graves.

And then we decided to try and turn it around on a positive note and like celebrate their life. Wow. So by February 1st, closing statements had been made and a jury had returned with a verdict. There's no way she's found guilty.

Darlie Routier was guilty of murdering her five-year-old son, Damon. Oh my gosh, there's no way. There's no way. Three days later, she was sentenced to death by lethal injection. What the hell is happening? She was then sent to await her punishment at the Patrick O'Daniel Unit in Gatesville, Texas.

But as you know, this is not going to be the end of Darley's story because this is not a very strong trial. Oh, okay. Well, you kind of freaked me out a little bit. Not by a long shot.

See, Darley's lawyers had been fighting with appeals and asking for further reviews of evidence ever since. And they've made a few strides. In May of 2000, Damon and Devin's bodies were exhumed to pull fingerprints from the boys to rule out an inconclusive print that was found in the home. And what they found was that the print wasn't a match with anyone in the family, which supports the idea that an intruder was in the home that night.

And aside from some of the jurors admitting that they felt like they had made a mistake...

after deciding Darlie was guilty so they come out after and are like maybe we made a mistake a new witness manifested as well and I'm I'm not sure how long after the verdict this was but I know someone comes forward to say that they were withholding information because they were afraid for their life they had witnessed something that night and they were too scared to come forward but now that she had been convicted they felt like they needed to and here's what they said on the night of the murder's

they saw two men walking by the side of the road near the home after the boys were killed and one man even loosely matched the description darley had originally given to police and another thing police felt to consider a series of rapes and violent attacks that had been happening around the dallas area at the time of these murders an assailant who would enter the unlocked homes of victims attack them with knives found in their own home

and would put tube socks over their hands to avoid leaving fingerprints. Hello? Yes. Hello? So since 2008, Darlie's team has been pushing for evidence to be re-examined using improved DNA technologies. And in 2018, those requests were finally granted. But as of 2024, the results of those tests are still pending. So she's still in prison?

You're lying to me. No, Darlie sits on death row right now. Her husband. This is absolutely wild. Her husband and now 29-year-old son Drake have faced an additional share of trials and tribulation. Aside from fighting for his mother, who believes she is innocent, Drake has had to fight leukemia. Oh my God.

Oh my gosh. He has undergone cancer treatment. And in 2018, thankfully, his cancer has gone into remission. But her husband, Darren, has also been placed under a media microscope as well. Oh, 100%. Because people are like, maybe he helped her. Maybe that's how they were able to do all of this. He's had to fight accusations. Much of the rumors stem from an alleged insurance scheme.

they're in supposedly devised do not understand how she's still in prison it's 2024 well there is a good share of people who think she's guilty you have to understand that when this video came out the public perception was this mom is horrible so if we killed her son take that video away though

There's nothing. I mean, she changed her story. First, she woke up. There's no blood on the couch where she claimed she was stabbed. The blood in the sink. Why is there blood in the sink? Why does it look wiped up? And then I'll hear your opinion. Okay. Because I'm curious to kind of see what you think.

Okay, so according to witnesses, Darren's plan was to hire a burglar who would steal some things from the home. He would claim the loss through insurance, take the payout, and then get his stuff back when the dust settled. So some people wonder if Darren had actually hired someone to do this and the man hired to do the burglary actually came in and attacked the family.

But Darren insists no such plan ever was created. And in 2011, Darren and Darlie actually mutually agreed to divorce, but he still completely believes that she's innocent. Okay. Darlie says there isn't a minute that goes by that she doesn't think about her sons, that sometimes she looks around her cell and wonders how on earth she is in prison.

The answer to that might lie in that video in those 30 seconds where Darlie chose to spray silly string on her son's grave. I don't know, man. Where she chose to grieve in a way that just didn't sit right with the world. And as of this recording, Darlie still hasn't stood trial for Devin's murder. A trial that, if ever granted with today's forensic technology, could prove she's innocent.

Or that she's managed to fool everyone who's believed in her innocence all of these years. And I'm telling you, there is DNA being tested in this case. And as of 2024, it is still pending. No, there's no way it's still pending. Test it. Anyways. And that is the root to your case. It's a little infamous because it is known as the mother who killed her sons and then sprayed silly string on the grave. So I'll just say one more thing about it.

Before we wrap it up. I think my, the only thing is, okay, even if she was guilty, even if she is guilty, in my mind, there is still not enough evidence to find her guilty, convict her, whatever you want to say. Does that make sense? So your team,

Try her for Devin's murder and test the technology. You, you, our team test this technology and find evidence to prove whether she's innocent or guilty. Like this, all this circumstantial evidence. It's just to me, that was not a fair trial. That wasn't justice. That wasn't the justice system. We took a video that like, it just, that, that can be taken so many different ways. If you don't understand mental health, if you don't understand this, like it's just not, it wasn't a fair trial in my mind.

There are going to be people listening to this that think she's guilty. For sure. 100%. And I'm sure there's probably more in that we didn't cover. I'm sure there's way more to this. I mean, we covered the main stuff. I will say anything evidence-wise is just going to be circumstantial in whether or not you are like... And it's like circumstantial evidence is so hard. Your thoughts? I think that she was convicted based solely off of the way she acted after the murders, not...

actual evidence from the night of the murders yeah um which is still evidence right i mean there is still circumstantial evidence it is odd behavior i just think that there could be reasons for that behavior i am not saying she is innocent or guilty she is guilty in the eyes of the law she has been convicted i do think saying yes we will finally test this dna in 2018 and it being 2024 and them being like oh the results are still pending that is

bonkers if someone is innocent and there is dna that could be tested to prove or if there's someone sitting in prison and there is dna to be tested that could prove that maybe they're innocent and it's taking that long like that is years of someone's life there needs to be a system and maybe there is where like

It's just they wouldn't allow it. The justice system probably wouldn't allow it where you could transfer that DNA to a private party and pay your own money to get it tested. They wouldn't allow it because honestly, they want to control it and it's effed up. Well, because the lawsuit. Oh, think of the lawsuit. If it's

If the DNA proves her innocent. There's someone else's DNA attached to this crime scene. Like you said, rightfully so. The lawsuit is going to be through the roof. It should be. I mean, it's probably been so long, but like people would be fired. Reputations would be ruined. I mean, there would just be so much going into it that they the last thing they want is this DNA to be tested. Guess what?

It's someone's life. I don't care. It is somebody's life. I do not care. Just how they want to convict people who kill people? Yeah. I mean, it's somebody's life, man. Also, a baby that she had to raise from prison. Yeah, I know. It's just there's so much I can't. After losing her two sons, if she is innocent. Insane. I mean, I'm not...

like taking one camp or the other, I tried to like include evidence from both sides. Like Garrett was fully convinced that she did this until I told the other side of the evidence. So I try to include both, but it is, it is a controversial case. Um, but honestly, let me know in the comments, let us know in the comments, what you think, your thoughts on this. Um, if there was theories that you felt left out, just try to remain respectful about the victims, family members. Yeah.

But yeah, I mean, it is a case that just is she sitting in prison innocently or did she kill her two sons? We will see you guys next time with another episode. I love it. I hate it. Goodbye.

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