EP. 159: GUAM - The Air Force Murder of Bradley Hale
01:29:38 Share

He's the most terrifying serial killer you've never heard of. Haddon Clark has confessed to several murders, but investigators say he could have over 100 victims. At the center of the mayhem, a cellmate of Haddon's that was able to get key evidence into Haddon's murder spree across America,

because Haddon thought he was Jesus Christ. Born Evil, the Serial Killer and the Savior, an ID true crime event. Premieres Monday, September 2nd at 9. Watch on ID or stream on Max. Set your DVR.

Hello everyone and welcome to the next episode of our new series called Murdered Americans.

And the story I have for you today is about someone I went to high school with, named Bradley Hale. Bradley and I both went to Montgomery High School here in Texas, and over the years we had a lot of classes together. What I remember about Bradley was that he was quiet and kept to himself, but he was also very sweet.

He was the type of kid where if you forgot your pencil, he was happy to lend you one. If you didn't understand a question on your assignment, he would help explain it to you. Bradley was also a part of our school's JROTC program, and he always had dreams of joining the Air Force after high school, and he would.

But years later in 2018, as I was scrolling through Facebook, I was horrified to see that Bradley had been murdered. At the time, he was in the United States Air Force stationed in Guam. And to my surprise, his death was not a casualty of war. He was actually murdered at the base by

by his own roommate named Isaiah Edwards. And as I was learning of his death, it just didn't make sense. Bradley was such a gentle and kind person. He wasn't aggressive. He wasn't the type to get into fights with people. But on March 26th, 2018, his life ended in a way no one expected. So this is the story of Bradley Hale.

I'm Courtney Browen. And I'm Colin Browen. And you're listening to Murdered Americans. In 1997, Bradley's parents, Rodney and Charla Hale, were living in Texas.

They were young, freshly out of high school, and trying to figure out what direction their life was going. Getting pregnant was not in their plans. But life has a way of working out exactly as it's supposed to.

Now, I actually had the pleasure of interviewing Sharla for this episode. And here is what she had to say about finding out she was pregnant with Bradley. So there was like a ton of mixed emotions because we had been trying for two years. So I got married when I was 18, very young. I had been with him since I was 15. So he was my boyfriend from sophomore year up, well, summer before sophomore year up.

And then we got married, moved into our own apartment. But we had been trying and I finally just gave up. Nani had told me that maybe it wasn't time yet. Maybe I was putting too much stress on it. I'm like, okay, cool. I'll go to college then. Because I wanted to anyway. But I was like, but if I was going to start a family, you know, I just wasn't sure how that was going to play out. So I was like, I'll go to college then. So I remember standing in line to buy our books, huge.

huge line with his sister, Becky and her husband, Herschel. We were all going to go at the same time. And I kept telling her, I was like, man, I just don't feel really good. I just feel tired and I feel nauseous or whatever. She was like, are you late? And I'm like,

I haven't thought about that. I got to thinking later, I was like, you know, I think I am. So I went and I bought two tests, waited for Rodney to come home from work. And we took them and we didn't have a phone. Not a lot of people had phones. If you were just starting out, it was a bill you didn't really need. So we ran to a pay phone and called everybody. We were excited to say the least.

The only sucky thing is I was taking some sort of biology class that year and we had to dissect a pig. And I was really good that whole semester until then. And I was like, I can't even finish. Then on April 23rd, 1997, Sharla gave birth to a baby boy named Bradley Grant Hale. And from then on, their lives would never be the same.

I asked Sharla what it was like giving birth to Bradley and bringing him into this world. And here's what she had to say. Surreal, to say at least. He is the reason why he has siblings because the whole entire time from the time my water broke so naturally at home and consistently.

Contractions came so slow, but progressed nicely. And the birth was not all that pain, but Rodney's stepmom at the time, she was an RN and I didn't know it, but she kind of like punked me. She was like, oh honey, it's too late to have an epidural. You can't have one right now. It's too late. And I was like, oh no, but okay. It just went so well. He nursed right away. He was so quiet and just so good.

and smiled all the time. Like, I remember him giggling in his sleep. Oh my gosh, he was so freaking adorable. Shortly after giving birth to Bradley, Sharla got pregnant again with another little boy they would name Nicholas.

Bradley is April in 97. Nicholas is August of 98. It was almost like they were twins. Once they got to a certain age, they pretty much like in their twos and threes, threes and fours, somewhere around there, they were practically twins. And that's when they were

they were their own partners in crime, basically, because there was no older one to say, we probably shouldn't do that because it sounded fun to both of them. I remember one time we were staying at my dad's in South Dakota on the farm and I was upstairs. I even brought my cousin to

to stay with me so she could keep an eye on the boys while I was working on one of the bedrooms upstairs to kind of get it more cleared out so that they could have their own room and stuff like that to play in. And I'm digging in this closet, pulling stuff out. Next thing I hear like behind me and I'm like, tell me she's not in here. She's supposed to be outside watching them. And I turn around and she's sitting there right on the bed. I'm like, where are the boys? She goes,

don't know. I told you you cannot take your eyes off these things. They are like gremlins. I run outside. I'm yelling for them everywhere. Sometimes I like to go by the sheep. So I went over there. They weren't over there. And I'm like, oh my God. So I...

after running around everywhere I could drove around, there's not much you can actually drive around, but I did that. There was like a big clearing in between two sets of trees where they would walk the cattle when it was time to put them over to the other pasture. So I even went down there and I was like, okay, it's been a long time since I've been on a horse, but I'm getting on one of these horses and I am riding around this pasture over here to see if I can find him.

Still couldn't find him. But I do remember on my last pass, I was about to turn and I saw something. And I saw two little blonde heads jump up out of the ditch. Like the ditch grass was so high that them standing in it, you couldn't see them until you saw them jump up because they were rolling down into the ditch. Sharla would later say that Bradley and Nick were like two peas in a pod, a nickname that would actually stick for Bradley.

Throughout his entire life, Sharla called him her sweet pea because that's the kind of person he was. Sweet. She also described him as, quote, easygoing and very curious. I asked Sharla what Bradley's interests were when he was younger, and she said that he absolutely loved to read.

Reading, mostly. I remember us emailing each other before the whole cell phone thing. You know, hey, what book should we read next? You know, different stuff like that. He read so much. I don't know if you've ever seen these memes about people who learn their vocabulary through reading and they don't exactly know how to pronounce. I remember one time he come to me talking about an inventory.

I'm like, what the hell is that? And he wrote it down for me. I was like, oh, inventory. Then one time he was like, yeah, you know, the e-light. And I'm like,

Write that for me? Oh, elite. Okay, got you. But by all accounts, Bradley was a bright and ambitious child growing up in the same place I did, Montgomery, Texas. The town is about 60 miles northwest of Houston and has a population of less than 1,000 people, so everyone knows everyone.

I had classes with Bradley from the fifth grade all the way up until graduation. And like I mentioned earlier, although we were never in the same friend group, he was always a very friendly and kind person to everyone around him. By the time Bradley got to high school, he played bass clarinet for our marching band.

and he was a member of the honor roll. Through his work with the Interact Club, he volunteered through Montgomery County and displayed a love for our community through various food drives, and he provided veterans with flags to display on their front lawns. In June of 2015, our class walked the stage at graduation, and from there, everyone set off on their different journeys.

Throughout his life, Bradley worked a couple different jobs. He worked at Papa John's Pizza for a couple of years, and then he moved on to Hugh and Jeff's Car Wash and Grill in Dickinson, Texas. But when he wasn't working, he enjoyed spending time with his family, listening to music, reading books, and playing games. According to his father, Rodney, Bradley was gifted when it came to making friends and admitted, "He was a friend of everybody. He was very friendly. He could walk into a room and not know anyone, but yet he'd come out with a new friend."

The Hale family was extremely close-knit and for every holiday, birthday or big celebration, they would always get the family together and enjoy each other's company.

His aunt described Bradley as, quote, so sweet, so polite, always so well-mannered, very considerate, and very caring with an unforgettable smile, end quote. Rodney recounted that his son was always happy and the two often spent quality time together working on cars. Rodney wanted to teach Bradley how to, quote, do his own car maintenance so that he could do it himself and Bradley loved it.

He had a very bright future ahead of him. He was adventurous, driven, and optimistic. And every time he pictured his future, he always saw one thing, the Air Force.

Bradley's family had an extensive military background. His grandfather had served in the Air Force, his father, Rodney, was an Army veteran, and his younger brother, Nick, even enlisted in the Navy. On Sharla's side, she also had a lot of family in the armed forces, so Bradley and his brother Nicholas grew up hearing their stories. My mom's side, her dad was in the Navy.

And him and all of his brothers, I think there was seven of them. They were all in the service. It was seven of them and one sister. And there was even like this news article that came out in the local paper where they were all in service at the same time somewhere. And he saw that. And I think that really inspired him. And then we went to go see my grandpa, the one that had been in the Navy. He had all kinds of stories. So him and Nicholas were just like...

So ever since he was little, Bradley dreamed of following in his family's footsteps and serving his country. And everyone knew he would succeed in doing so. Some of his friends would later say that he was so determined and smart, they believed he could one day work for NASA. And they were right. Bradley could have achieved anything he wanted in this life. But more than anything, he was extremely excited for his future and often spoke with his father about his dream to fly for the Air Force. For Bradley Hale, the sky was truly the limit.

Shortly before he left for basic training, Bradley and his mom bonded over this book series that he absolutely loved. His favorite series was the Wheel of Time series. He absolutely loved that one. About a year before he left for basic training, I think we bought the box set.

He wanted to make sure I had it so I could start reading it. And then I bought it on CD as well because we're all big audio book listeners because we traveled all the time. So it was so much easier than them in the backseat having their face in a video game or whatever. We would listen to books together. Then I saw they've made a series of it on Amazon. And every time I see it, I'm like, oh my gosh, he would have absolutely loved that.

Now, like any person in the military, Bradley got to pick his preference on where he wanted to go. And all of Bradley's choices were pretty far away from Texas. That was part of the thing, too. You could write down what base you wanted to be assigned to. Not that you would actually get that choice, but if they weren't able to give you a choice, which one would you want? His first choice was Alaska.

He wanted to see the world, you know, and if you couldn't go outside the world, that's the farthest he could go. And his second choice was Minot, North Dakota. He's like, well, if I couldn't go there, maybe I could be close to grandpa. And I'm like, cool, let's do that. And he got Louisiana and I'm like, okay, you stay close, mom.

Soon enough, Bradley learned that he had been stationed in Northwest Louisiana, so he packed up his things and made his way to the Barksdale Air Force in Bossier Parish near Shreveport. It was bittersweet, leaving his hometown to follow his dreams, but it would all be worth it because he was now a Barksdale Airman.

But little did Bradley know he would soon meet another member of the Air Force that would change his life forever. And that was 22 year old Isaiah Edwards. Although Bradley never spoke about Isaiah's behavior to his friends and family, other airmen stationed at the base would later admit that Isaiah was known to start fights, was proficient with nunchucks, and he was skilled in the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Charlotte told me that Bradley and Isaiah would hang out together at the base. Bradley was a very trusting person who saw the good in everyone, but he clearly had no idea just how dangerous his new friend really was. And it's around this time when basic training ended and Bradley decided to go home for a few weeks to visit his family. While there, he also worked at the Air Force Recruiting Office.

His mother, Sharla, said, "It was so funny to see my funny, goofy Bradley all grown up." Now, around the start of 2018, Bradley found out he was being sent somewhere else, which definitely was unexpected. And he wasn't even allowed to tell anyone where he was going or why.

But unbeknownst to his loved ones, Bradley found out that he was going on a six-month deployment to the Anderson Air Force Base in Guam due to the rising tension between the United States and North Korea.

He also found out that while he was there, he was going to be sharing a dorm with none other than Isaiah Edwards. We at first thought that they were assigned together, but it turns out they picked each other. And I'm guessing it's because they got along at Barksdale.

Shifting my wardrobe from summer to fall is always a challenge, but luckily, Quince offers timeless and high quality items that I absolutely adore. Online shopping can be a little bit difficult, but Quince makes it so easy. When I was going through and adding items to my cart, there were so many options that I had to choose from and...

I was so obsessed with all of them. Every piece of clothing is so high quality. It will last you forever and everything is so cute.

Quince offers so many high quality products for all different types of people like cashmere sweaters from $50 pants for every occasion washable silk tops and so much more the best part all quince items are priced 50 to 80 percent less than similar brands So after ordering from quince I received the 100% European linen blazer the flown it breeze performance tee and the flown it breeze performance polo and

I was absolutely stunned by the quality of the clothing and the European linen blazer is perfect. I mean, it fits me so unbelievably well. It's slimming and I can't tell you enough. It's just ridiculously high quality. So if you're having a hard time switching your wardrobe from summer to fall, I highly, highly recommend you shop at Quint.

It makes switching seasons a breeze with Quince's high-quality closet essentials. Go to quince.com slash america for free shipping on your orders and 365-day returns. That's quince, q-u-i-n-c-e dot com slash america to get free shipping and 365-day returns. quince.com slash america

If you're like me, you're constantly thinking about the safety of the people and things you value the most. After doing this podcast for years and reading about home invasions and robberies gone wrong and all sorts of tragedies, I knew I needed to secure my home with the best. My research led me to SimpliSafe.

I've trusted SimpliSafe to protect my home for three years now, and the level of security and customer care has been incredible. I sleep better every night knowing SimpliSafe's 24-7 monitoring agents are standing by to protect me if someone tries to break in, and it gives me comfort knowing that they'll send emergency help when I need it the most.

I want you to have the same peace of mind that I and so many listeners experience every day, which is why Courtney and I have partnered with SimpliSafe to offer listeners 20% off a system. Just visit simplisafe.com/inamerica. What I love most is that SimpliSafe just keeps getting better. With exclusive live guard protection, SimpliSafe agents can act within five seconds of receiving your alarm, and can even see and speak to intruders inside your home, warning them that the police are on their way.

As a SimpliSafe user that's seen all of this firsthand, it's no surprise that SimpliSafe has been named Best Home Security Systems by U.S. News & World Report for five years running and the Best Customer Service in Home Security by Newsweek. So, protect your home this summer with 20% off any new SimpliSafe system when you sign up for Fast Protect Monitoring. Just visit simplisafe.com slash inamerica. That's simplisafe with an i dot com slash inamerica. There's no safe like SimpliSafe.

And now, let's get back to our story. Soon enough, Bradley and Isaiah were on their way to Guam, but they still weren't allowed to tell their family members where they were going. But I do remember him calling me...

But I don't know if it was because it was early in the morning or late at night because the time is so different. But I do remember taking that call in this bathroom right here so that I could be quiet. Now, even though Sharla didn't have all of the details, she was so proud of her son.

I was proud of him because he had been through the basic, went through his tech school. He was actually going to get to do something with it. So I was happy for him. Eventually, Bradley would get to share with his family that he was stationed in Guam. And I asked Sharla if she had any fears about him going there. I would be remiss to not point out that our country hasn't really been in a great place

And there's always like even now, I'm afraid, you know, the whole Russia and China and when Russia even invaded Ukraine, I was like, oh, my gosh, of course, we're going to help. What does this mean for our troops? So something of that nature.

I was afraid what happened, we would get pulled in. And around that time was when Kim Jong-un was basically shown his ass. That was part of the reason why Bradley ended up going to Guam, was they were there as a show of force, but also doing like training exercises and whatnot. Just say, hey, we got a little stronghold over here. But Charlotte truly had no idea what was ahead for her eldest son.

Once Bradley arrived in Guam in February of 2018, he moved all of his things into his dorm, located on the second floor of the Anderson Gateway Inns and Suites. That day, Isaiah Edwards also moved his stuff in. Now, he and Isaiah were in one room, and they had a joint bathroom that they would share with two other airmen in the adjoining room next door. And once everyone was settled in, they started adjusting to their new normal in another country.

Charles stated that Bradley was excited for his deployment as he had heard from other airmen that it was a great opportunity. He was also excited for a change of scenery in a place that was unfamiliar. And for the first few weeks of deployment, Bradley and his roommate Isaiah appeared to get along. There were no reported incidents of conflict. But interestingly, in February of 2018,

After only a few weeks of being in Guam, a barbecue for the airmen was held at the supervisor's lodging. And while they all sat around eating their food, the question of murder became a topic of conversation. Apparently, one of the airmen asked the question, quote, "Do you think you could ever kill someone?"

To which Isaiah answered that he probably could if the situation arose. A few days later, the question was asked again by one of the airmen on the flight line. This time, many of the airmen stopped to think about their response.

Many of them stated that they could kill someone, but only if they had to protect their families or possibly in the line of duty. But this time when they asked Isaiah if he could kill someone, he nonchalantly replied, "Yes." Witnesses would later say that his response seemed unemotional and cold.

as if he had no problem taking someone's life. Isaiah then turned to the non-commissioned officer and asked, "Could you kill somebody just to kill somebody?" The officer appeared taken aback by the question and he responded, "No, I don't think I could do anything along those lines." Isaiah then shrugged his shoulders and stated that he could probably do it.

Jokingly, he then turned to his roommate Bradley and volunteered, "I think I could just kill Bradley in the middle of the night." Witnesses said that Bradley just laughed it off, and he played along by raising his hands in the air and saying, "There's nothing I can do to stop it." Unfortunately, no one realized just how much foreshadowing was in that statement.

During Bradley's deployment in Guam, he regularly communicated with his family members despite the 15-hour time difference. He even made plans to go on a trip with his stepbrother Shane when he returned home. Everyone expected that they'd have more time with Bradley. Shortly before March 26th, 2018, his father Rodney texted him saying, "I thought I would tell you I was thinking of you and tell you to have a great day." Bradley replied, "I love you and have a great day. Mine is ending in a couple of hours."

The two ended their conversation by saying they loved each other. But unfortunately, it would be the last time Rodney ever spoke to his 20-year-old son. I asked Sharla what her last conversation with Bradley was. And here's what she had to say.

But unbeknownst to everyone, including Bradley Hale himself, tragedy was right around the corner.

During the early morning hours of March 26, 2018, the base was quiet as everyone had long since gone to bed. But shortly after 2 a.m., Bradley Hill woke up and got out of bed to use the restroom. Once he was finished, he got back into bed.

And suddenly the overhead light in their bedroom turned on. The next thing he knew, his roommate Isaiah was standing over him. "Get out of bed," Isaiah said. Bradley was confused, but he did what he was told. However, as soon as he stood up, Isaiah punched him in the jaw as hard as he could, knocking Bradley to the ground.

He then stood over Bradley and continued to punch him in the face. Now, like we mentioned, Bradley had a background in martial arts, so he had no problem overpowering him. Throughout the beating, Bradley tried to stand up multiple times, but every time he did, he was met with another blow to the face. After multiple punches, Bradley was in rough shape.

One of the punches actually knocked out his front tooth and sent it flying across the room. But despite the severe beating, Bradley was eventually able to push Isaiah off of him. And when he did, Isaiah stumbled back and lost his footing. Afraid for his life, Bradley used this opportunity to stand up. Now, he couldn't run away because Isaiah was standing in front of the door.

He also couldn't fight back against someone with a background in martial arts. So in that brief moment, Bradley looked at his surroundings, trying to find something that could protect him. And sitting there on the dresser was a pocket knife that belonged to Isaiah. Not knowing what else to do, Bradley grabbed it with his left hand and he held it up to protect himself.

He didn't want to hurt Isaiah, but after the severe beating he went through, he just wanted it all to stop. However, Isaiah had different plans. At that moment, he lunged at Bradley, knocking him to the ground.

There was a brief struggle, but Isaiah was able to take the knife away. And it's here, while straddled over his chest, where Isaiah went on a stabbing frenzy. Bradley thrashed around underneath the weight of his attacker, doing everything he could to get away. But in return, Isaiah would stab him 13 times in the neck, chest, hands, and back. It all happened so fast.

Isaiah would later say that the entire fight lasted roughly 30 seconds. But now, Bradley was on the ground bleeding profusely from his stab wounds, three of which were in his neck. So he did what everyone does in this situation. He tried to scream. At that moment, their suite mate next door, senior airman Charles Jordan, suddenly jolts awake. Maybe he was having a nightmare.

But as he sat up in his bed, the screams continued. This was not a dream. And the sound was coming from next door, in Isaiah and Bradley's room. So Charles quickly ran through their adjoining bathroom to see what was going on. It was obvious that his suitemates Bradley and Isaiah had gotten into an altercation. But when he stopped at the vantage point from their shared bathroom, he saw something truly horrific.

Inside the dorm, Isaiah was on top of Bradley in what he would later describe as a full mount position. Bradley was thrashing around on the floor, twisting side to side in an attempt to get away. But more than anything, Charles couldn't help but notice the blood. The amount of blood coming from Bradley's neck was hard to even fathom.

It was also clear that Bradley was trying to lift his hands towards his neck to stop the blood flow. But disturbingly, Isaiah wouldn't let him. Instead, he was pinning Bradley's arms to the ground as blood was freely flowing out. And then sadly, Bradley let out his very last word. He looked at his attacker and asked, why?

After seeing this, their sweet mate Charles didn't know what to do. He didn't want to get involved because what if he got attacked? So, he decides to rush back to his dorm room and wake up his roommate. And together, they ran down to the lodging manager's office to get help.

As for what prompted the two to seek help downstairs, Charles admitted that they did not know Guam's emergency phone number because it obviously isn't 911. He would later say, "We were going to call the cops, but we didn't know the number. There was a number that we had to dial before 911." The lodging manager would later say that the two airmen arrived at her desk at around 2:15 a.m. in a panic.

and the men quickly explained to her what was going on upstairs. Without hesitation, she immediately dialed the security forces team as well as fire dispatch. Meanwhile upstairs, Isaiah Edwards held Bradley down on the ground until he was unconscious. And surprisingly, he would wait 10 whole minutes until he called the police. During that time, Isaiah would go into the bathroom and thoroughly wash all of the blood off his hands and arms.

He then locked the door to their bedroom and paced around, trying to figure out his next move.

But eventually he knew he had to call the police. Bradley was now on the floor completely still after being stabbed 13 times. And Isaiah's first 911 call would come in at 2:22 a.m. But interestingly enough, when that call came in, the dispatcher couldn't even understand what he was saying. They would later say, "It sounded like some sort of stuttering, but it was inaudible.

Now that call would eventually disconnect and a minute later at 2.23 a.m. Isaiah would call again. In this time, he clearly told the dispatcher, quote, Now by then, first responders were already on their way after getting the call from the lodging manager downstairs.

and they would arrive on scene at 2:37 a.m. and quickly made their way up to the second floor. But when they approached Isaiah and Bradley's dorm, they couldn't get in because it was locked and Isaiah wasn't opening it. From there, the first responders actually had to break open a window to gain access to the room. When they finally did, they walked into a horrific scene.

20-year-old Bradley Hale was lying on the blood-soaked carpet between the two beds, and right next to him was Isaiah Edwards' knife. The first responders quickly checked for any signs of life, but sadly, there were none, and Bradley Hale was officially declared dead at 2.47 a.m.,

There were six agents of the Air Force of Special Investigations tasked with investigating the crime scene, and once they began looking through the dorm, it was clear that a violent struggle had taken place. Bradley had deep lacerations to his neck and was stabbed a total of 13 times. The area was in disarray, and a piece of Bradley's tooth had flown across the room. Meanwhile, Isaiah only had a mild cut to his right hand and some carpet burns on his knees from pinning Bradley to the ground.

and like with any investigation, he was quickly taken in for questioning. Now, while the Air Force Office of Special Investigations tried to get to the bottom of what happened, other officials had to make the difficult task of informing Bradley's family. If you have a loved one in the military, then you know that getting that knock on your door is everyone's worst nightmare. And sadly, that was about to be his family's reality.

And because of the extensive time difference between Guam and the United States, police didn't show up to their home until the night of March 27th. Now, Sharla wasn't home at the time, so her husband, Gary, opened the door. But here is how that experience played out.

I just worked that day because it was a Monday. Oh, and I had to drop something off at my best friend Kim's house. So I ran over there to drop that off. And me, her, and her husband sat around and talked for a little bit. And I'm like, okay, I better get home because it's almost time for dinner.

And I remember driving home and I was almost to the feeder road and my husband calls me. So I picked up on the speakerphone in my car and he was like, you need to get home right now. And I'm like, OK, I'm almost there. Wow. No, there are uniformed people. And that's all I heard.

I'm just like getting lightheaded and I'm just like, Nicholas or Bradley, Nicholas or Bradley, Nicholas or Bradley. And so I'm like freaking out and I get there and I park and they get out of the military view and it's just a sedan and they get out. And I believe there was a female class by two males and she's talking to me. And the whole time I can't really hear what she's saying. Cause I'm looking at her lapels, trying to figure out what branch she's from and

So I know what son she's talking about because she would just say, hail. So I eventually have to ask her, I was like, Nicholas or Bradley. So then she clarifies. And then it's just, I don't remember her saying anything after that. I just immediately started to collapse. And I know my husband was standing right next to me and he caught me and he put his tailgate down real quick and popped me up there. But I do remember her face. Her face just looked like,

She was so sorry. I remember them saying he was lost is what I took away from it. So I still had a little bit of hope, but I'm like, where is he? How did you lose him? So I'm thinking, you know, because of his job, did he have to go into one of the aircrafts during their training or maneuvers or whatever? And did something happen is what I'm thinking the whole time.

But later that night, Sharla's husband clarified that Bradley was not lost. He was gone. I remember now it was just an hour or so that I thought it was technically lost. But I think my husband probably heard way more of what they said. That's not what they meant, that he actually is dead. But we don't know how.

From that moment on, Sharla's entire life turned upside down. As for Bradley's father, Rodney, his life was about to change forever too.

One of the first things Sharla asked when the officers were informing her was if Rodney knew. And as it turns out, there was a group of uniformed officers knocking on his door at that same time. Like with Sharla's case, Rodney wasn't home at the time. He was at a friend's house. So his wife was the one who opened the door. And soon enough, he came rushing home to the news that Bradley was gone.

In an interview with the Shreveport Times, he said, "I was at a friend's house. My wife called me and she was crying. She called me and told me I needed to come home now. So I came home. I saw the two police officers in the black car. I went inside, and they introduced themselves and told me that my son has passed. And as you can imagine, they were devastated.

And there were still so many questions surrounding Bradley's death, but they weren't going to get those answers just yet. But in the meantime, Sharla said that her husband Gary was such a huge support in her life at the time. He even called all of their friends and family members. And late that night, all of their loved ones came over to show their support.

I just remember at some point he called my best friend. He called my sister. He called everybody came over. Him and his buddy Keith, my best friend Kim, her husband, they went and bought a bunch of wine. Fire pits for out there so we could all hang out outside. He even made like charging stations for everybody. I mean, he was just the best. But everyone was absolutely devastated over Bradley's death.

And they wanted answers on what happened. But the only thing that made sense at the time was that he was in some sort of freak accident. The truth behind what really happened was a shock for everyone. And little by little, they were given those answers. It came in bits and pieces. I'm wanting to say it probably took three, maybe four days to understand the enormity of what happened.

Because at first it was, he was dead. Then it was not an accident. Then it was his roommate. Then it was how. And then once we got the how, it was like anger, I guess. Like how could you put our son with that maniac? And then when we found out, oh no, they asked to be roomed together.

So he knew him. Oh my gosh, that makes it even worse, I feel like. It was horrifying to think that Bradley wasn't even killed by a foreign enemy or while out in combat, but by his own roommate.

And the details of exactly what happened weren't readily available at first. The chief of public affairs for the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, named Linda Card, told the Air Force Times that a person of interest was in custody, but they wouldn't even release Isaiah's name due to the pending investigation. But she did tell the media, quote,

An agent saw what appeared to be a stab wound on Bradley's body, and she also added that there was a significant amount of blood at the scene. However, the fact that Bradley's killer was in custody did bring his family some comfort. Once that was there, and once we knew he was in custody, and had been in custody since then,

- The 36th wing commander at Anderson Air Force Base, General Douglas A. Cox issued a statement after the murder saying, "Our focus is supporting the families, the affected unit and our community. This is a very difficult loss. Professional support services are assisting those affected by this tragedy and our prayers and thoughts remain with them."

Unfortunately, Bradley's body couldn't be returned to his family in the US until his autopsy was completed. So on the night of March 27th, Bradley's body was taken from his dorm at the Anderson Air Force Base to a naval base in Guam. A forensic pathologist was flown in from Japan to complete it, and he reported that Bradley had "two cuts to his jugular vein, a gaping wound on the right side of the neck that injured the carotid artery, and a complete transection of the left carotid artery."

The left carotid artery was cut completely across and was the most significant wound Bradley Hale suffered and would have involved heavy bleeding. He further explained that Bradley's incised wound is

is a wound that is made by a sharp object in drawing across the skin and it is longer on the skin surface or outside surface than it is deep in the tissue in simpler terms an incised wound is also referred to as a slicing wound there were also injuries to his thyroid cartilage and trachea the forensic pathologist stated that these wounds would have prevented Bradley from breathing

In addition to his neck wounds, Bradley also had multiple stab wounds on his hands from what appeared to be defensive wounds. There were also several bruises on his body, including two on his forehead and several on the left side of his face, on his cheek, jaw,

"ear and behind the ear." The forensic pathologist concluded that the contusions found on his face could have been caused by, quote, "a blunt force object striking the victim or from a fall," end quote. He also concluded that Bradley's manner of death was indeed a homicide.

Now soon after this, the island's chief medical examiner, Dr. Espinola arrived at the facility and although he did not examine Bradley's body, he did receive a full copy of the autopsy report and he agreed with the pathologist's findings. But there were still so many questions about what happened and Bradley's family knew it would be a while until they got those answers.

So in the meantime, they put their focus into grieving. Sharla wrote on her Facebook page, quote, It's with a sad, heavy heart that the world has to say goodbye to my firstborn, Airman First Class Bradley Hale. He was killed in Guam while on assignment. I do not have the words to describe what my world is like right now, and I cannot imagine my life without him. Rest in peace, my sweet pea. End quote.

On Bradley's Facebook, many people who knew and loved him did not hesitate to write about the lasting impact he made on their lives.

Our high school band leader wrote, quote, I'm in tears as I think about your son and the wonderful times we shared. I've had the pleasure of seeing Bradley's smiling face every day for six years while he was at MHS. Bradley was the most respectful, patient, and kind-hearted individual we had, and the other kids loved and respected him. End quote.

It took a lot longer than expected to get Bradley's body back to the United States. Coroner, medical examiner, whoever does the getting the body ready for transport, she even testified. That was another hard thing to hear, how she had said it took her a really long time to get him ready for transport and presentable for the funeral because they wanted to make sure we were able to have an open funeral.

casket for him. But from what I understand, the main reasoning is something like a customs type thing with the body. It takes like a certain amount of days before it can leave the country. And then it took a while, even the beginning, to release the body because they had to take so many pictures and measurements and prints and everything for evidence. It was difficult having to wait nearly two weeks for Bradley to come back home.

But in the end, Sharla also said that it was a good thing. Which was a blessing and a curse. It gave family out of town able to make arrangements so that they could come down here just to be with us and attend the memorial and the funeral. And then we just had everybody back here afterwards. Another person who had to make it home for the funeral was Bradley's brother Nick, who was his best friend.

That's another thing, a blessing and a curse, because it took us that long to get word to him and to get him home. Because he was on a sub somewhere up by Europe.

On April 9th, Bradley's body was finally returned back home to Texas. As they pulled his casket, wrapped in an American flag, out from the plane, local members of the armed forces stood by and saluted as he was carried out to a hearse. Bradley's father Rodney stated, "The Patriot Guard, everybody was there. He arrived at Bush Intercontinental and the military was there with honors.

They kept everybody on the plane until after Bradley was off. The military was there and marched and picked him up and put him in the hearse, and then we were all escorted to the funeral home.

Sharla said that when Bradley's body was brought in through Bush Intercontinental Airport, they let their family out onto the tarmac, where they drove under flags and the firemen's water hoses, which she didn't even know they did for fallen soldiers. It was a really beautiful experience. The following day, April 10, 2018, Bradley's funeral was held at the Sam Houston Memorial in Montgomery, Texas.

and his family stated, in lieu of flowers, were asking for donations to the Wounded Warrior Project in his name. His family was also blown away at the response from their community, with his father stating, "We had Patriot guards, police everywhere. I had a lot of friends that are in the police department, and they actually offered their time without getting paid."

We probably had 25 police cars there. They actually shut down I-45, which is a six-lane highway. I've never seen that unless it was for the president. And they blocked it down for about 30 miles. And at the burial site, they did the honor guard. The shots fired. Now, I asked Sharla about Bradley's funeral because there's this picture I found of his brother Nick standing next to his casket. And it's just so heartbreaking to see.

Like Sharla said, he and Bradley were like two peas in a pod, best friends. And his brother's death was so hard on him. Sharla said that Nick tried to stay strong, but after that picture was taken, he turned to his grandpa, and while in a huge bear hug, they cried together. Sharla also said that despite all of Bradley's injuries, they did a really good job of covering his wounds for the funeral.

They did a really good job. And unfortunately, he passed away at such a time where he was going through a huge bout of puberty. I hate to bring this up, but...

When I saw him, I was like, that's not my son. Why did they make him look so old? Why did they give him a mustache? No, that's how he was. A little over a week after his funeral, Bradley's 21st birthday would pass on April 23rd, and his loved ones did their best to celebrate his life. Many of his friends got together and shared stories about Bradley. One friend posted a video of everyone with drinks in hand,

with a caption that read, quote, "Hey buddy, we brought your 21st birthday in right. We love you, we miss you. Of course, we took a shot for our brother. In your name, in honor of you."

But like with any murder case, grieving is extremely difficult, especially when you don't have all the answers. Bradley's mother, Sharla, would later speak to the Guam News and say this. It just breaks my heart. He really loved the people he was with, the places they were going. He was really excited to go to Guam. My main concern or my main wish is to know why.

Sharla also said, quote, I feel like I'm in a nightmare and every morning when I wake up that it'll all have been a really bad dream and that I'll have my baby back. But it's just how could someone do that to someone else? It's beyond me, let alone it being your fellow airmen. They're supposed to be battle buddies. They were supposed to be brothers. I just don't understand it.

Sharla said that the weeks after Bradley's death were so hard, but her family and friends were a great support system. I felt like I bawled for like a month between being heartbroken, being grateful for my friends and family. Like nobody left me alone. I mean, even the very next day, my best friend from like ninth grade, my two best friends came over and took turns being here while my husband was at work.

They were just amazing. And they did like this whole meal train, all of my friends and family. So I didn't have to cook. So every night there was a whole new dinner. I was like, oh my gosh. But there was still so much uncertainty about what went down.

No one knew exactly what happened on the night of March 26th, 2018. But luckily, about two months after Bradley's death on May 25th, Isaiah Edwards was finally charged with his murder and taken back to the Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana. He would remain there until his trial. And everyone was hoping that once his trial came around, we would finally get answers.

It was set for January 7th, 2019. When that day finally came around, Bradley's loved ones drove to the federal courthouse in Shreveport, Louisiana, all wearing blue ribbons to honor him. Here's what Sharla said about those blue ribbons.

My aunt Kim, she asked me, she goes, Hey, I want to make these ribbons. What color should we do them? I was like, Oh, the Air Force blue, I think would be really nice. And his favorite color was blue. My favorite is blue. Let's just go with that blue. And she said, Okay, so she made them for us all at the funeral. So then when we went to the trial, we all brought them with us as well. We all kept them. I still have mine.

Now, because the crime occurred on an Air Force base in Guam, this was a federal trial, with a seven-member Air Force panel consisting of two women and five men. That same day, Isaiah Edwards pleaded not guilty in court, and for three days, the prosecution and defense teams worked out pre-trial motions and reviewed important evidence they would present. And then finally, on Thursday, January 10th, the trial commenced.

Now, interestingly enough, there is like no information online about Isaiah Edwards. You can't find a picture of him anywhere. In fact, it wasn't until his trial when Bradley's family finally got to see his killer. And here is how Charlotte described him.

He's probably about almost six foot. He was a year older than Bradley. They actually share a birthday. He's from the Dallas area. From what was said in court that he had grown up in the church. But he looked very clean cut and intelligent to me.

At around 8.30 a.m., the prosecution began their opening statements, telling the jury that on the morning of March 26th, 2018, Isaiah Edwards murdered Bradley Hale in cold blood. They also played a five-minute long video of the crime scene, showing Bradley laying on the floor of his dorm covered in blood.

a video that was very difficult for his family to watch. Bradley's parents, Sharla and Rodney, were advised not to be there for the opening statements because of how graphic it was going to be. Day one, opening statements. They came to me and Rodney and were like, you might want to sit out opening statements.

Because we're going to go pretty hard. We're going to show pictures. And I'm like, okay, we'll set out. So we asked anybody else, do you want to set out? Everybody else was like, nope, we'll stay in here for you. And they did. And even during the trial, I

Like when they would start to show pictures, me and Rodney would both be looking down. And then my husband would tap me when it's okay to look up again. He tapped me real quick if he thought it was about to be where I needed to look down. So then Rodney would just follow my lead. So then it got to the point though, I'd be looking down so long. I'd be like, forget my leg would hurt. She was like, I told you to look down. I was like, I'm sorry. Yeah.

There's two pictures I accidentally saw because of my little ADHD brain that I, gosh, I wish I didn't see. Like when they were showing his defensive wounds on his fingers, that was a picture I saw and they were sliced pretty deep. And then I saw a picture of

And it wasn't his whole body, thank goodness. But of him on the floor of their room in between the two beds is where he was found. But the rest of them, my husband, he's like, yeah, I'm glad that you didn't see any of those. My niece, I hate that she was there and did not look away. She's the same age as Bradley. They were only four months apart. They were best buds also.

growing up, but she felt like she had to do it for him. And she has nightmares still. And I'm like, that's probably not ever going to stop. But after opening statements, the jury would get to hear everything. And everyone wanted to know what led to this. Why at three in the morning was Bradley Hale murdered? Was there an argument between the two? We honestly don't know because Bradley isn't here to share his side of the story.

But the prosecution pointed out that Isaiah Edwards prophesied this exact event just weeks before the murder. Like we mentioned, in February, someone at the base asked Isaiah, "Could you kill somebody just to kill somebody?" To which Isaiah responded, "Yes, he could." Then moments later, he said, "I think I could kill Bradley in the middle of the night." Witnesses would later testify that Bradley laughed it off.

raising his hands in the air saying, quote, "There's nothing I can do to stop it." However, no one realized that that's exactly what would happen. Now to everyone's surprise, Isaiah would actually take the stand at his murder trial. And the story he came up with would shock everyone. He claimed that he killed Bradley in self-defense. And he said the reason the fight started was because he woke up that night and he felt something touching his butt cheek.

Isaiah said he opened his eyes and saw Bradley walking to the restroom. Now, before you make any judgments, I think it's very important to note that Isaiah never mentioned this to anyone. He didn't mention it in the 911 call or when he was questioned afterwards. And you would think that if that story was true, that would be the first thing you say when you talk to investigators. Now,

Now the prosecution would later claim that Isaiah had nine whole months to put this fabricated story together. And during his testimony, he would share his version of what he said happened that night. On the second day of trial, Isaiah told the court that he completed his shift on base at around 7:00 PM. And then he went back to the dorm room that he shared with Bradley.

The two spoke for a few minutes and then Isaiah left to go grab some food. Not long after, he walked back to the dorm with his food and Isaiah admitted that he pulled out his pocket knife and told Bradley that he should have robbed the restaurant at knife point. Bradley apparently laughed it off and Isaiah placed the knife on the dresser. From there, he ate his dinner and then went to bed without incident.

But Isaiah claimed that hours later, he woke up and felt something touching his butt. And that's when he opened his eyes and saw Bradley walking to the restroom.

He admitted that the two hadn't argued or fought that night before he went to bed. But once he felt Bradley touching him, he said he got really pissed off and was, quote, just sort of fuming for a bit. So while Bradley was in the restroom, Isaiah said he decided to get up and hide in the corner. Moments later, Bradley came back and got into bed. And that's when Isaiah turned on the lights and ordered him to stand up.

Isaiah told the court that he started beating Bradley up to quote, sort of make it even, saying quote, I was thinking at the time while I was standing up that I was going to hit him and that would sort of make it even. I mean, if I would have hit him then, I wouldn't have to tell anybody else and he wouldn't have to tell anybody else and that would have just been the end of it.

But Isaiah didn't just hit Bradley. He started beating him to a pulp. So much so, he knocked his front tooth out.

Isaiah also admitted in court that he had an extensive background in martial arts, and he was fully aware that Bradley didn't. So it was pretty easy to overpower him. But then at one point, Isaiah lost his footing, and that's when Bradley decided to stand up and grab his pocket knife. He told the court, quote, "'Bradley was standing in the other direction, sort of back towards me, and he held my knife in his left hand.'"

He went on to say that he was "really scared" because his roommate could have stabbed him. So he pulled him down and jumped on top of him. And it's here where Isaiah said he "stabbed Bradley really hard." When it was time for the prosecution to cross-examine Isaiah, they had a lot of questions about his story. For one, Isaiah claimed that he was scared for his life and that he murdered Bradley in self-defense. He had no injuries.

There were minor wounds to his hands, likely from repeatedly punching Bradley, and then he had carpet burns on his knees. Meanwhile, Bradley was missing a tooth and had deep bruising all over his face, including two bruises on his forehead and several on his cheek, jaw, ear, and even behind the ear.

So if Isaiah was really afraid for his life, why did he walk away completely unscathed? The prosecution also had questions about Isaiah pinning Bradley's arms to the ground. When someone's throat is slit, it's very common for them to grab their wound to prevent blood loss. And this can actually save someone from dying.

Now, Isaiah stabbed Bradley 13 times, so clearly, he wasn't going anywhere. So why pin his arms down? To the prosecution, this deliberate act was to make sure Bradley would die. In response to this, Isaiah told the court that he pinned his arms to the ground because he did not know where the knife was or what Bradley was trying to do. He told the panel there was no pausing and that he did not have a lot of time to think about what was going on.

but Isaiah said that the reason he pinned his arms down was because he "was not sure what Bradley was doing with his hands, and I was just holding them." The prosecution also talked about the full mount position he had on Bradley, and Isaiah admitted that he purposefully used the position to exert a level of dominance and control over Bradley, a move he learned during his years on the high school wrestling team. And Isaiah admitted that he was fully aware Bradley didn't have any martial arts training that could have benefited him during the attack.

So as much as Isaiah tried to claim he was afraid for his life, the evidence told a different story. Here was this man who was a skilled fighter beating the crap out of his roommate. So Bradley grabs a knife to protect himself and in response Isaiah overpowers him and stabs him not once, not twice, but 13 times.

So the prosecution asks Isaiah, "If you were so scared for your life, why did you corner Bradley? Why not run to the restroom? Why not run out the door or yell for help?" It was becoming clear that this was not the act of someone afraid for their life, but of someone who wanted bloodshed.

If the jury wasn't already convinced of this, several airmen would take the stand and say that Isaiah Edwards was a liar. He was the type of guy where, if he told you a story, no one around him ever believed it. Other airmen testified that Isaiah was notorious for being aggressive and starting fights with people. He was also known to carry nunchucks and was pretty skilled at using them. But one thing no one could get over

was the fact that Isaiah literally told his colleagues weeks before that not only could he murder someone for no reason, but that he specifically could kill Bradley in the middle of the night.

The technical sergeant who overheard him say this would testify that he thought it was a joke. Everyone did. Even Bradley. But weeks later, Isaiah would prove to everyone that it wasn't a joke. And that's exactly what he would do. The prosecution also brought up the fact that after he murdered Bradley, Isaiah ran to the restroom and thoroughly washed the blood from his hands and arms. And then he just waited around for a while, trying to figure out his next move

while Bradley died on the ground next to him. Trial counsel would later say, quote, "...he has all of that time alone in that room. He has time to think. He has time to go to the restroom. But Isaiah does not knock on the door. He does not make any noises. He does not yell out for his suite mates." End quote. It was also determined that Isaiah waited nearly 10 minutes to call for help.

Phone records later indicated that the lodging manager's phone call came several minutes before Isaiah's. And on his phone call, he said nothing about Bradley touching his butt or that he was afraid for his life. Now, Isaiah's claims that Bradley was touching him in his sleep was pretty hard for everyone to believe.

His family, his friends, and the airmen who worked with Bradley and Isaiah every day just didn't believe this story. Sharla said that they didn't even know Isaiah would be using this defense until he took the stand. And when they heard it, they couldn't even believe it. I was like, did I just hear what I think I heard? How dare you? So first you bring us through a trial to begin with, and this is what you come up with?

But to me, there's no way that that defense tracks with what the roommates heard during the attack. Why would he ask him, why are you doing this? Which is a good point. After being stabbed multiple times, Bradley's last words were, why? Why would Bradley waste his time asking that if he knew why? And in the end, everyone said that that just wasn't the kind of person he was.

Bradley's family members would take the stand to defend his character, and they all described him as a peaceful person. His paternal aunt described him as "sweet, polite, and well-mannered," and went on to say that his father Rodney was devastated by the loss of his son. She said that throughout her entire life, she had only seen her brother cry one or two times, but now he cried almost every day,

as he struggled with the realization that Bradley is dead. She went on to say, quote, As for Bradley's mother, she said that his death felt, quote, End quote.

Bradley's former employer also took the stand and told the court about Bradley's service history. He said that his death had a profound effect on the airmen that knew and loved him. He said that some of the airmen were in shock with the news as they had always been under the impression that their unit was close and they had each other's backs.

In addition, the commander stated, "Several members of the unit were struggling with Bradley's death. They were significantly impacted, and although this funeral service provided some closure to some members, we still had individuals take much longer to deal with the loss of Bradley. Some members are still struggling today." Throughout the week, everyone had to sit through extremely graphic testimonies. Many people had to see things they never wanted to see and hear things they will never be able to forget.

Here is what Sharla said about the suite maid's testimony.

There's some tiny details I wish I didn't know. We had the Article 32 hearing the fall prior, where the suitemates testified for the first time, just to make sure that that testimony was going to be allowed in. And when I found out that when the suitemate came through the bathroom and saw Edwards after he had already testified,

cut him, gouged him, slashed him in the neck that Bradley was trying to hold, I guess, onto his neck because what else are you going to do? But then Edwards is taking his hands away. That, I heard that, and it's a very small room in the Article 32. His parents are there as well, and I couldn't hold it in. I let out a very auditable voice.

But in the end, there were so many parts of Isaiah's story that just didn't add up.

And it wasn't an accident. If it was an accident, you would be trying life-saving measures. You would be allowing him to do this. You wouldn't be making sure he died. Exactly. Because that's what people do when they do have an injury to their neck. They hold it so you stop the bleeding. And he was deliberately trying to make sure that he couldn't. There's a few things that I don't get. Like how did he have time to try and clean up? They sprayed luminol in the bathroom sink area.

And it was clean to the naked eye, but there was blood everywhere. Sharla also said that the 911 calls were also suspicious. He called once, then hung up, then called again. But on both calls, he never once asked for help. And again, he never mentioned anything about Bradley touching his butt.

But after hearing all of the details, Bradley's family was angry. They were angry at Isaiah, angry at the Air Force, and in the beginning, they were even upset with the suitemates for not stepping in to help. And I was mad at the suitemates too, at first. I'm like, the lawyers, when I was mad about it, they were like,

But finally, on Tuesday, January 16th, 2019, the trial came to an end.

with two hours of closing arguments. The prosecution argued that Isaiah's explanation of self-defense did not add up. They believe that Isaiah, who had spent nine months in jail before the trial, had enough time to plan and elaborate a story and take the stand in his own defense. The prosecution told the jury, "This new story emerges." And again, he is saying these statements clearly and calmly

End quote.

At this point in the argument, Isaiah's defense attorney stood up and objected due to burden shifting. However, the judge stated, "I have instructed you numerous times, and you will also see it in writing as well, that the government does have the burden of proof that will never shift to the defense. I believe it will be clear, but if for some reason there are any questions or concerns about that, please let me know. I have no concern that the government was attempting to argue otherwise. I will allow trial counsel to finish the argument."

The prosecution once again took center stage and finished their argument by saying, "Self-defense does not add up. He did not have to testify. He had no burden to do anything. But he took the stand, he took the oath, and he said things that are just not true." When it was time for the defense to present their closing arguments, they stated that there was reasonable doubt of Isaiah's guilt due to the government's forensic testing of only 15% of DNA swabs collected at the crime scene.

According to their argument, AFOSI agents collected numerous DNA swabs after Bradley's murder, but more than 100 of those swabs had not been tested. The defense believed that if more testing had been done, it could have potentially been helpful for Isaiah's case.

Now, I'm not sure how DNA evidence would have been helpful here considering this isn't a whodunit kind of trial. But to finish their argument, they stated that Isaiah was defending himself that night and that he never intended to murder Bradley. Following closing arguments, the jury was dismissed for deliberations on the afternoon of January 16th. And after about 11 hours, they had finally reached their verdict.

On the morning of January 16th, everyone piled into the courtroom. Isaiah Edwards stood to his feet, emotionless, and stared straight ahead. And from there, he was told that he had been found guilty of the unpremeditated murder of 20-year-old Bradley Hale. Sharla told me that she was very thankful that the jury saw right through his lies.

I think the jury saw straight through that. Totally. It didn't take them long, I felt, to find him guilty.

After this, the seven-member jury would go right into the sentencing phase of the trial, and Isaiah was facing a life in prison sentence without the possibility of parole. On that same afternoon, the jury was shown a heart-wrenching video that was provided by Bradley's family, showing different pictures throughout his childhood and early adulthood. The video was seven minutes long and depicted 30 photos of Bradley with acoustic background music.

According to court documents, these photographs showed the victim as a newborn, playing with his brother and their dog, standing with his bass clarinet, hiking with some friends in Guam, and posing in uniform with what his mother described as his signature smirk.

Other pictures included Christmas celebrations, Bradley's first day of kindergarten, posing in his baseball uniform, holding up a fish he had caught, during an outing with his father and younger brother, and playing with toys when he was a child. The prosecution argued that the death of Bradley Hale had a profound effect on his family, friends, and of course, their community.

Victim impact statements were presented to the court from Bradley's mother, his father, high school friends, employers, and other family members. It was obvious that Bradley's death impacted those he loved as his maternal aunt stated: "The family does not feel whole, and Charla is not the same. She used to be happy and bubbly, and now she's just sad a lot. She has a lot of nightmares. I can't get her to go and do some of the things that we used to do. She is not the same."

Another video was played that showed Bradley's father, Rodney, crying into his son's military uniform while the prosecution stated, quote, "Members, as you watched that clip, you saw him take his uniform, his son's uniform. He brings it up to his nose and breathes it in. Members, that is a man who is clinging to the last life of his son. He will never come back. Members, because of that man right there,

"Airman Bradley Hale's life is over forever. He is not coming back. The lives of those around him have been altered, and that is completely appropriate, necessary, and fair that his punishment be fitting for his crime. He chose to murder Airman Bradley Hale, and for that the appropriate sentence is reduction to the grade of E1, dishonorable discharge, confinement where he will not get out, and no eligibility for parole.

Now, throughout the entire trial, Isaiah Edwards showed no emotion. In fact, he wouldn't even look at them during the victim impact statements. I asked Sharla about those statements, and she actually wrote it, but Rodney was the one who read it. And here is what she had to say about that. But he showed zero emotion. His entire affect was flat.

Wouldn't really look at us, even when we were on the stand during sentencing. Both myself and Rodney took the stand for that.

Rodney read a victim impact statement that I wrote, which had to be edited by the attorneys. I don't know if it's different for federal and they didn't want me to read it. And I think they wanted Rodney to read it because he was about probably two seconds at any point in time of jumping the rail and killing him himself.

There was a very thin line that kept that man from doing that. And I think they wanted to keep him busy while he was on the stand so that he could say his piece, but in a structured manner. As for what she wrote in the victim impact statement, here is what Sharla said. That he didn't just hurt Bradley physically.

that he hurt us, he hurt his own parents. There was a lot of lives ruined and that my son will never get to be a dad. He'll never get married and have that whole family life experience. And I'll never get to know what kind of person he would become, like what type of person he was gonna become. Nobody will ever get to know that. What kind of impact could he have had on other people's lives?

Nobody will ever know that because it's just gone. The sentencing trial was definitely stressful. While the prosecution argued for life imprisonment with no chance of parole, the defense wanted Isaiah to spend less than 10 years in prison for the murder of Bradley Hale. But that would be up for the jury to decide.

And on Tuesday, January 22nd, 2019, they ruled that Isaiah Edwards would spend 35 years in prison with the chance of parole. In addition to his sentence, he was also dishonorably discharged from the Air Force. Here is what Sharla had to say about his sentence. I was upset, but...

that if I felt it was way too short, but then after, like I said, I got into listening to a lot of podcasts and watching a lot of true crime and I'm like, glad his was 35 and not 15 like this one got, you know what I mean? So I'm always constantly like comparing, but at the end of the day, I mean, it's, I'm probably totally biased, but still think it's too short.

Although Bradley's family wanted a longer sentence, they were satisfied that the defense did not get their request of less than 10 years. Sharla admitted that the trial had been rough on their entire family, but once Isaiah was sentenced, they would be able to fully grieve Bradley's death. She later said of her son, quote, "He was amazing, nothing short of amazing."

After the trial, the Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana issued a statement that read: "In the case of A1C Edwards, the members of the court material, also known as a jury, found the evidence that supported the charge that A1C Edwards murdered A1C Hale. The members sentenced A1C Edwards to 35 years of confinement and a dishonorable discharge. Our thoughts remain with A1C Hale's family and his unit as they continue to cope with the tragic loss from this incident."

Losing any airmen has a profound impact on families, local communities, and the Air Force mission. The prosecution of this case shows that the Uniform Code of Military Justice provides commanders with the tools necessary to protect the due process rights and presumption of innocence of an airman accused of a crime, while also promoting good order and discipline by holding them accountable.

As for Bradley's father, Rodney, he admitted that Isaiah's sentence wasn't long enough, as he believed he should have got life in prison. In an interview with KTBS outside the courthouse, he said, quote, I wish it was without parole, but I am not the jury. I don't feel he should have any less time than my son, because my son doesn't get to live to see everything there is in this life.

He also told the reporter that after the sentencing hearing, he actually spoke to Isaiah's father. Rodney told reporters, quote, "'I told him nobody wins. "'He is going to lose his son just as I lost mine, "'except he'll be able to visit his.'

I can't visit mine other than at my son's gravesite, end quote. As we were leaving the last day after everything is all said and done, Rodney went over, shook his hand and basically said, there's no winners here.

On November 17th, 2021, Isaiah Edwards appealed his sentence with the argument that the two videos presented by Bradley's family during his sentencing were not proper victim impact statements. During the hearing, the defense objected to the video, saying, "We do not object to the statements themselves of the victim's parents but the photos with music. We do not believe that it is proper impact."

and because "a video in general is not a statement." They also argued that the background music provoked an emotional response from the jury and thus their sentencing decision was prejudiced. However, at the time, the military judge had stated: "As to the music, it did not have any words, it was acoustical."

the court certainly recognized that certain music can be designed or intended to evoke certain emotions of sadness or despair the music in this case although obviously not upbeat the court did not find that it invokes such emotion or sadness or rage the impact was provided in other words by the family not the music choice though certainly there has been no evidence here i would not expect the music itself was in any way created by the victim i believe it was a neutral backdrop

It was not intended and will not and would not inflame the passions of the members." The question of the second video featuring Bradley's father crying into his son's military uniform also raised alarms by Isaiah's defense team. The prosecution had stated that it was important to show the video because it displayed the full impact of the crime on the family, but the defense argued that it was an unsworn statement and its contents had not been admitted into evidence.

The military judge overruled the defense's objection to the video, saying it was part of the, quote, unsworn victim statement and could properly be considered by the panel, end quote.

Isaiah argued in his appeal that the military judge abused his disposition by allowing the video to be played during his sentencing hearing and also allowed the seven panel jury to take one of the videos into deliberations. However, in the end, the judge believed that the introduction of the video did not influence the jury in any way.

Isaiah also claimed that the sentence he received was too severe and that Bradley's death did not warrant 35 years in prison. He believed that his sentence should be decreased by at least 25 years and his defense supported this by saying, Bradley's killing was an unplanned and tragic response to unwanted sexual contact. However, the

the evidence that was presented during the trial showed that Isaiah used extreme force to murder Bradley, first by beating him and then stabbing him multiple times in their shared room. In response, the AFCCA stated, we do not resolve whether Appelant testified truly, only that the explanation he gave for killing Bradley Hale does not render his sentence inappropriately severe. In the end, Chief Judge Olson upheld the sentence that was imposed on Isaiah Edwards with the court document reading, accordingly,

The findings and the sentence are affirmed. Now, I asked Sharla about this appeals process, and here's what she had to say. Maybe a year and a half ago now, he wanted to do a retrial, and he was going to drag us through it again. But this time, it wouldn't be like

The part about finding him guilty, it would be the sentencing part only. And it would be audio only like a replay of the original sentencing hearing. So they wouldn't have like the full impact of having sat through the whole trial. You know what I mean? We're like, well, what if he ends up getting less?

Because this is already 35 for someone who sat through all two weeks almost. So we were like freaking out. And then he was like, well, through his lawyer, if you'll reduce it like five years or something like that, then we won't appeal. Like, okay, if we give him five and he won't appeal anymore, you got that in writing, we'll do that. And the only reason why we felt okay doing that, because at the same time,

He was being prosecuted for injuring two guards at the prison. So they were saying that he could get up to seven years for that. And I'm like, so technically, and it wouldn't be able to serve concurrently. He would have to serve it after. We were like, so technically, we really aren't giving him.

But then Rodney was so mad. He went up there for the trial for the guards and he ended up pleading out for like some ridiculous amounts. So in the end, Isaiah Edwards' 35-year sentence stands as it is. But I had never even heard that he injured two guards in prison. So clearly that just shows you how violent this guy really is.

Today, Isaiah Edwards is housed at a prison in Louisiana, but he will be eligible for parole after serving one third of his time, which is around 10 years. As for Bradley's parents, Sharla and Rodney, they still grieve the loss of their son,

but they also remain hopeful that they will one day see him again. Sharla said that if she could see Bradley one more time, I would want to tell him that he will always be a part of me and I will never forget him. I will carry him with me wherever I go until I see him again.

But to wrap this story up, I want to include this part of me and Sharla's conversation where I asked her about closure. A lot of times, people who have a loved one that has been murdered say that they never really get closure. They just kind of learn to deal with the pain. When I heard he passed away, I was so shocked and disappointed.

I remember hearing about it on Facebook. So I've kind of kept up with it over the years. And I was so curious about what happened. And when I found out just like the details of everything, I was so shocked. And I just want to say, I'm so sorry for your loss. I can't even imagine. So I'm sure it's been a whirlwind for you and your family. For sure.

Yeah. Lots of new experiences nobody ever wants to have. Right. No one ever prepares you for something like that. And there's not a rule book on how to deal with it either. You just kind of have to deal with each day. But I don't feel like we ever got closure because we never got a true answer either. I cannot tell you how many letters I have crafted to that

whatever, in my head. And every time I'm like, oh, I'm going to write it and I'm going to send it, I'm like, no, you're not. You're not. Because then you're giving him more than he deserves, like attention and whatever. And I don't want him to have that. And he probably wouldn't be honest either way. Exactly. He's up for parole at a certain time as well. If those are denied and

Maybe he'll finally come out and say it, but the dude will be like 60 or who knows if I'll even still be here by then. I just kind of had to give up on the closure part. And my conclusion is he is an actual psychopath who just wanted to know what it felt like to kill someone. And it sucks because it's not...

It's not an emotional answer that will give you any type of closure because that's a cold calculating, the dude didn't have emotion. Sharla also said that Bradley saw the good in everyone. He was a friend to anyone. So for him not to pick up on those traits of his and him giving Edwards the benefit of the doubt that he's just weird. Lastly,

I asked Sharla to describe her son and the legacy he leaves behind. He was just true goodness. There wasn't a mean bone in that boy's body. He was a protector. I mean, he had two younger brothers. And once he got to the point where he knew had some sense, he tried to keep them in line, you know what I mean? And try to teach them how to be better. And I think they are better because of him.

They really are. And unfortunately, it's because they had to suffer through him being gone. But they appreciate things more. They appreciate family more, I've noticed. They don't say no to family functions like they used to. And I absolutely hate it, hate it, hate it that he's gone. And he was gone so young. But I feel like he had a purpose.

Hey everybody. Thank you so much for listening to this week's episode of murder in America. Courtney really wanted to tell this story. I'm really glad that this was able to happen and it was a pleasure having Sharla on as a guest for the show, but we have some really, really exciting new updates coming in the next couple of weeks. Courtney and I are about to be on our summer break. We just moved into a house, our first house ever. So it's a really exciting time in our lives, but we're going to be talking about

I got some stuff to share with y'all that we're going to be covering next week. I want to give a shout out to some of our new patrons, Pixie Stix Art, Francisco Rodriguez, Christian Rubio, Laurie May, Amy Murrett, Michaela Raymundo Aguilar, Ashley Stewart, Natalie Remedios, Amy Warkenton, Mitch, Hannah Long, Catherine Barron, Devin Schmidt, and so many more.

So guys, if you want to sign up for Patreon for $5 a month, you get access to all of our episodes early and ad free for $10 a month. You get access early and ad free plus two bonus episodes of the show. And for $20 a month, you get four bonus episodes of murder in America every single month, along with that early ad free access. So if you love the show, if you want to help support what we do here,

definitely consider checking out Patreon. And if you sign up today and you're a new member, you'll have access to dozens of episodes that you've never heard before. Anyways, guys, thank you all for listening so much. Courtney and I love y'all. We have some really exciting stuff to talk about next week. So yeah, just stay tuned and thanks for listening and I'll catch you on the next one.