Haywire

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this was perhaps the biggest question. [01:08] Which one of those young people bore the greater responsibility for the attack on Mickey Costanzo? [01:14] Was punishment for that crime fairly applied? Cody Patton, by refusing to blame his girlfriend, ensured for himself a lifetime in prison. Yes. [01:25] You avoided the death penalty. [01:26] But he'll never be free again, he'll die in prison. [01:29] Tony Frato, on the other hand? [01:33] piles of blame on Cody. [01:36] and more. [01:36] She claimed she was an abused woman, and, though an accomplice, a frightened and reluctant one.

[01:44] Tony was imprisoned on the lesser charge of second-degree murder with a built-in possibility of parole. [01:51] Was hers a true story? [01:53] Or just a strategy? Was the fatal decision hers or Cody's? Well, Tony was just along for a ride that went bad. [02:02] We asked Detective Donald Burnham, [02:04] He didn't claim to have the answers either. [02:07] I don't think that Cody or Tony would tell the truth to anybody but each other. It just doesn't appear that anybody has gotten the true answers to this. [02:15] reasons are the whys.

And I think the only people that have the answer to those questions is Tony and Cody. [02:23] We wondered if their history would talk for them. [02:27] or at least offer clues, [02:30] And so we went digging into the past. [02:34] Tony told me. I just hate her. I just hate her. She's [02:39] this such bad person and how much she just wished Mikayla would just go away. [02:44] I'm Keith Morrison. [02:45] And this is 5 Miles From Home. [02:48] a podcast from Dateline. [02:59] There was, you'll recall, some significant history between Cody and Michaela.

[03:08] They'd grown up in the same apartment complex for childhood friends. [03:13] And at 12 or 13 or thereabouts, they played at being boyfriend and girlfriend, though it was all quite innocent and very brief. [03:21] said Mickey's sister, Christina. [03:23] They never had the feelings that you would have for a boyfriend/girlfriend. More like brother/sister. More like brother/sister. [03:29] They were just... [03:30] best friends for a long time. [03:34] Then in high school, Cody met Tony Fratto. And that was the real deal. Cody fell hard. In love for life hard. [03:46] But we know from Tony's diary that she feared their love wouldn't last.

Her entries revealed deep insecurity and repeatedly intense jealousy directed towards the prettier and more popular Mickey. [04:01] And though she and Cody were planning a wedding, Tony wrote that she was certain he'd soon want to leave her. [04:08] for Mickey. [04:09] from the diary. [04:11] He will be happier and can see her a lot, a lot more than he will ever see me, [04:16] They hang out every single day, like all day long, too. I know anything I do is wrong. And then there was this. [04:25] To be honest, I don't know why I'm even still living life.

It's not worth my time. It's pointless. [04:35] The source of all that angst seemed to be one incident in the high school. A minor thing, really, a misunderstanding of the sort of thing that happens at that age. Mickey and Cody, remember, were lifetime pals that had grown up together. [04:55] Mickey's sister DJ said it must have been a couple of years before Mickey was killed. [05:00] I guess. [05:01] They exchanged a kiss between each other. [05:04] From what Tony told me. [05:06] Then Michaela found out that they were together. [05:09] And she felt horrible.

[05:12] So what my sister did was she walked up to Tony face to face and told her what happened. And said I'm really sorry. I didn't know. [05:21] And believe me, it won't ever happen again. [05:24] According to Tony's mother, Cassie, [05:26] Mickey's apology appeared to ease the tension between the two. [05:30] at least during the summer of 2010. [05:32] several months before Mickey was murdered. [05:36] Tony and Michaela had coincidentally met up at [05:40] our local swimming pool. And Tony had said, "I thought that we had made peace." [05:46] because they talked about [05:48] how silly they were as young girls and talked about Cody and [05:52] Michaela had said, "Don't worry about it.

If you want Cody, you go for it, girl." [05:57] They patched things up, came to a, [06:00] an agreement. And Tony felt really comfortable about that. She did not have a beef with Michaela. [06:07] at that point. [06:08] Things were fine. [06:10] But according to Mickey's sister DJ, things were not so fine. Toni's jealousy only intensified. She said things, nasty things, to Mickey. And this was not just a few times. This was a lot. Oh, yeah. [06:27] Tony really hated her. [06:29] She'd walk by and, [06:30] say something so rude under her breath, making her feel bad, and Mikayla would just pretend it didn't bother her, and in reality, it hurt her.

We're talking about a couple of years, though. [06:38] Yeah. [06:39] The hatred with Toni grew more and more and more. And it went on until pretty much she died. [06:45] But it was even worse than that, said DJ. When Toni was mean, she said, Cody got nasty too. [06:53] I remember getting off work one day, and I was sitting there, and she ran in, and she was bleeding. [06:58] On her arm, she said, [07:01] Cody had a little box cutter blade. [07:04] And he swiped it across your arm. [07:06] And at first she said, "I didn't even know."

[07:09] And then I look down and I'm bleeding and [07:10] I look at him. [07:12] And he's laughing. [07:13] Was that kind of the straw that broke the camel's back with her? That was. [07:17] She said, "This is what's made me see." [07:20] that [07:21] He's not worth it. [07:23] And then I really don't want a person like that in my life at all. And at that point, he was just a nobody to her anymore. So from then on, Mickey avoided Cody. [07:35] cut her old childhood pal right out of her life, especially during the months before she was murdered.

[07:42] Mickey's mother, Celia. [07:44] They weren't talking. They weren't being friends. She already... [07:49] minimized any contact. But Mickey's cold shoulder only seemed to fuel Cody's fire. [07:56] Here's DJ. [07:58] He grew really angry at her after that. [08:01] would do things to try to [08:03] make her mad just so she'd talk to him. [08:05] When... [08:06] They didn't talk for a very long time, he said. [08:09] He loved Michaela. [08:11] He just didn't want her to ever go. [08:13] and he didn't understand why she went. [08:15] It was a real shock to him to all of a sudden have her there, thick and thin, and then over and have her.

[08:23] An angry and abandoned Cody, a jealous Tony. Maybe that's why Mickey had been so worried, said DJ, about what those two might be up to, weeks and even months before they killed her. [08:36] She says he keeps trying to get me to go with them. [08:39] Why is he talking to me now? [08:42] Because he's never tried to reach out and say anything, and now all of a sudden, here he is. [08:47] And she just felt really insecure. Did you get her to go out? With him and Tony. [08:51] With the two of them.

Yeah, and she just said... [08:54] I don't get it. It's not right. [08:56] Something's just wrong. [08:59] So why would Mickey get into a car with Cody that day after school? Well, maybe she didn't. Not voluntarily, anyway. Remember, the police found a zip tie around Mickey's arm. We still don't know exactly how or why Mickey ended up in that car with Cody and Tony. Their shifting stories made it hard to know what was true. But Celia was emphatic. [09:26] with either one or both of them. Not a chance. She was smart, she was careful, and she was afraid.

She'd already for two years been staying away from him. [09:38] And then to hear that she got into a vehicle with Cody and Tony... [09:42] Never in a million years. [09:46] Something else. Mickey's family is convinced that Cody and Tony knew that the few days around the time of the murder were the only days they would find Mickey alone after school. [09:58] The timing [10:00] It was too perfect. It was the one time that [10:03] DJ was at college. Christina was out of town. I was at work. [10:09] It's the one time that Michaela would have actually had to walk home.

Do you believe that they set out to kill her in the first place? Yes. [10:18] This is a girl who was always with someone. She had friends, she was around people all the time, [10:25] You could not get my daughter alone. If you're going to do something, you would have to plan it out. [10:34] There is one more story. [10:37] that just might reveal the trigger for what those two kids did to Mickey Costanzo. [10:42] We found a recording buried deep in the case file, never presented in public, never reported.

[10:51] Remember that plea deal Cody first accepted before suddenly changing his mind? [10:56] It was January 2012. [10:58] a little over 10 months after the murder. [11:01] Cody had just started making a sworn statement to the DA. [11:06] All I'm asking you to do today is to tell me the truth. [11:10] You understand that. Yes, indeed. It was to be a full and frank account of what really happened and why. Here was the part of Cody's whole new story. He managed to get out before he clammed up. [11:27] That morning, between classes and several hours before he did what he did to Mickey, Cody told the DA, Tony confronted Mickey in a school hallway.

[11:39] Tony Calderyslut. [11:41] She said, look it there. There's that slut. I told her that she needed to stop that bull. This was within Michaela's hearing? Yeah, she was right in front of us, walking by. [11:54] So what happened then? [11:57] Tony called a few more names, but I know the slot was what it made me spark to. [12:05] Sparked a big argument, that is. [12:07] Cody said he intervened, told Tony, "Knock it off." [12:13] Cody told the DA he didn't like it when people have a feud between them, especially with friends and family.

[12:20] So after school, he suggested to Mickey... [12:24] Why don't you guys just talk it out? [12:26] And Tony had told me that he just wanted to dupe it out with Michaela. [12:31] Duke it out. Buy it basically. [12:34] And I said, "Okay, well, I have kamiki." [12:37] We laid the message to Nikki and said, well, she just wants to find out. [12:41] And... [12:42] Mickey came to the resolution. She's like, "Okay." So, said Cody, Mickey did get into his borrowed SUV after school that awful day. Got into the car with just him, voluntarily, expecting to go and have it out with Tony.

[13:01] They drove around for a while, said Cody. And then they picked up Tony, and Cody drove out of town to the gravel pits. [13:10] And what did Cody tell the DA about what happened there? [13:14] Well, as it turned out, nothing. Because, just then, Cody's attorney John Olson arrived, and the two conferred privately about what would happen if his case went to trial, that he would likely be convicted. [13:29] And yet, something in that moment shifted in Cody's mind, shifted in spite of his attorney's warning. Cody returned to his meeting with the DA and announced that he had changed his mind.

[13:44] I decided to decline. [13:46] Okay, so I'm willing to accept the plate mark. Clear. [13:50] Which Cody's attorney, John Olson, further clarified by asking the DA. And the author is not the table. Yes. Mr. Patton does not have the option of... [14:00] taking it anymore without this point. [14:04] Did you get all that? Cody, much to almost everyone's surprise, rejected the plea deal that could have kept him off death row. [14:12] Instead, he declared he would go to trial, let a jury decide. [14:16] because he believed he would be found not guilty.

And why would a jury acquit? [14:23] Well... [14:24] His attorney, John Olson, believes Cody was convinced Tony would never, ever testify against him, never betray him. After all... [14:34] He had never betrayed her. [14:37] So right then and there, Cody refused to say another word ever again. [14:42] about what happened in the desert on that terrible day. [14:45] But attorney Olson, who has never disputed that Cody was involved, does have his own theory about what really happened when those three arrived at the gravel pits. [14:56] My guess would be that there was an opportunity for [15:00] Tony.

[15:01] to confront Michaela. And they went out to the desert to have the confrontation away from prying eye. [15:08] Then something happened. I think something bad happened. A bad idea that became a screw-up. [15:13] A bad idea that became a horrible idea. [15:16] A bad idea that went very, very bad. [15:20] Why do you think it happened? I'd have to just guess. But I think it's something that got out of hand. [15:26] that went very, very wrong. I think they were more reactionary than they were premeditative. [15:31] I think that nobody intended [15:35] "for there to be a death in this."

[15:36] in the beginning. [15:38] that maybe there was an intention to do something else, and I think it just went haywire. [15:44] So, what was it? A planned, premeditated attack to confront Michaela? Simply scare her? Or actually kill her? Everybody we talked to seemed to have a different theory. But on this... [15:58] "They agree," said Detective Donald Burnham. [16:02] It appears to me that Cody and Tony carried this act out together. I don't think that Cody or Tony would tell the truth to anybody but each other. [16:10] And they aren't talking.

[16:12] No, they're not. [16:14] Except... [16:15] We did talk to Tony. [16:17] in jail. [16:18] after she confessed and was sentenced. She had a lot to say. [16:23] Maybe just a little more than she intended. [16:38] Your morning starts, your coffee pours, the city moves. But beneath it all, something else is moving. It's Energy Transfer, one of America's largest pipeline companies, transporting oil, natural gas, and refined products across the S. These products keep homes warm, businesses running, and everyday life on track. Okay. [17:00] People rely on energy transfer to safely deliver oil and gas whenever and wherever it's needed.

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com. [18:15] There's a dismal logic at work in jails around America. It's an architecture of purgatory. These are the places that house inmates in that gray zone of waiting. Waiting for trial. Waiting to be sentenced. Waiting to be transferred to a more permanent prison dwelling. [18:32] In most of these places, inmates are stored in "pods" as they call them. Huge rooms of painted concrete in which metal bunks offer nothing like privacy, as inmates mill about under the gaze of all-seeing cameras and keepers watching in some central control room day and night, all the time.

And the minutes and hours crawl aimlessly, endlessly. [19:00] Tony Frato waited for her transfer to prison while encased in just such a place. [19:05] The Elko County Jail. [19:07] where she languished in the constant company of a hundred or so other waiting women, [19:12] Day after day. [19:14] night after night in that concrete pod. [19:17] for 16 months, [19:19] and she [19:20] thought about things. [19:22] Like. [19:22] the value of telling her story to us. [19:28] And on the last possible day, the day before her transfer to the state prison, [19:33] A jailer led her in to see me.

[19:36] I'm Keith. Hey. Nice to meet you. So here she was, Toni Fratto, the former Little Miss Wendover, still the picture of a child, tiny, in her big girl prison outfit, her hair tightly braided in a bun, [19:53] you [19:54] We'd arranged to have our meeting in a small courtroom not far from her pod. And this was a new one on me. The jail agreed to let Tony's mother watch from an adjoining room through a thick plate glass window, which meant she and Tony could make eye contact. [20:13] Tony's mother could also hear us.

[20:16] though we could not hear her. So two lines of communication, ours with Tony, hers, and [20:23] silently with her mother, as our cameras rolled. [20:29] We'd hoped, naturally, that she would finally tell the truth. [20:33] about that nightmare in the desert, tell us what really happened, and tell why. Instead, she began with what sounded like a bit of historical revision about the young woman she helped kill [20:46] I knew of her, but I did not know Michaela. [20:49] I knew her from school and from... [20:52] the apartment complex that Cody had lived in.

We'd been hoping for an honest conversation. Too much to ask, perhaps. When it came to the question, did Cody decide to attack Mickey? Or did she? [21:09] There are people who say... [21:11] that you were very jealous and that you... [21:15] manipulated him into committing murder. [21:18] - I was not jealous of Mikayla. Yes, that one thing that I had wrote in my diary, [21:26] But that was... [21:27] way early in our relationship. [21:29] Did you ever say to him, get rid of her? [21:31] No, I did not. Get rid of her or you lose me.

No. [21:35] Didn't give him that choice. Absolutely not. [21:39] Tony insisted to us that on the day of the murder, she had no idea what was brewing. Only that earlier that week, Cody seemed angry and edgy about something. And that things were building up. Otherwise, said Tony, it was just a normal Thursday. She went to school, then attended a town meeting with her mom. [22:05], said Tony, when she got that text message from Cody. I have her, it said. So I told him, come get me. We'll talk this all out.

Yeah, well, I want to find out for myself what's going on. [22:19] People may find it hard to believe, but I still did not believe that he had her in that car. [22:24] Until I had gotten in that car. [22:26] and just something [22:29] on his face was not right. I guess that would have been another opportunity for you to decide not to go. [22:34] Right? [22:35] What was the reason you... [22:38] walked out of that safe meeting sitting beside [22:41] apparent. [22:42] to go and see another? - Just to see proof for myself.

- Proof of what? [22:47] That he had her. [22:50] Which, when we heard that, made us wonder, did Tony slip and reveal a hidden truth? When she made her deal to plead to second-degree murder, giving her a shot at freedom someday, Tony claimed that she was just doing what Cody demanded she do, and had no idea of what would transpire that awful night in the desert. But here she was admitting she actually wanted to join Cody, [23:17] with a kidnapped Mickey in the back of the car. [23:22] Then another slip?

Does this sound like some planning had been involved? [23:29] Listen to this. [23:30] Well, when we finally got out to the [23:34] designated area and everything. What do you mean the designated area? [23:38] where everything went down. [23:40] That area was designated? [23:42] Well... [23:43] just [23:44] The area where we ended up. [23:47] No plan to go there, insisted Tony. So designated area? Maybe. Maybe not. [23:55] Okay, tell me what unfolded. [23:58] To me, I'd rather not get into a lot of detail. It's still a blur to me, just when everything started getting out of hand.

[24:07] Which began, said Tony, when Cody got out of the car, leaving Mickey and her inside... [24:14] and started digging what would be a grave. [24:18] Why didn't you just [24:20] leave. You and Michaela, there were two of you. You could have just driven away when he got out of the car. I was too much in fear. [24:29] I was scared, terrified. [24:32] Even if I tried to get away, drove off, [24:35] He would still come and find us, and it would be ten times worse. [24:42] Tony insisted she had no choice but to stay there, where she witnessed the last moments of Mickey Costanzo's life.

He had told me to go and get in the car, turn the car around, face the headlights. [24:55] to where [24:56] they were at. [24:57] He had told me to stay in the car, look away, don't look. I stayed in the car when all that went down. [25:05] Tony claimed, insisted in fact, that she did not take part at all in the killing. [25:12] Which, as you may remember, was not what she said when she confessed to Cody's attorney that she was very much involved. [25:19] Back then, she said they both murdered Mickey together, [25:23] Using Cody's knife, [25:25] But later she told the DA and now sitting with me a much different story.

[25:32] You didn't. [25:34] hold the knife that you didn't cut her. Correct. [25:37] So, [25:38] it reduced your culpability. [25:41] You can say it, yeah. Uh-huh. I'm not trying to diminish my actions or anything. [25:49] of what I did [25:50] but I won't take responsibility for something I did not do. Frequently, as Toni kept distancing herself from the crime, she looked through the glass to her mother, especially when the question turned to why. I did what I was told because I was scared I didn't know what to do. So scared of Cody.

Cody. [26:12] that she stayed there in the SUV and watched as he killed Mickey. [26:17] Because she feared that if she didn't do what she was told, she'd be his next victim. Why would it kill you? [26:26] the only [26:27] thing that I can [26:29] Even... [26:30] Think that I would be next? [26:32] was because I was a witness, and I was there with Michaela. [26:39] Even when it was all over and they got home, said Tony, Cody kept her paralyzed in fear. He told me he don't say a word.

If he'd get caught, then he would take the complete blame, and I was to keep my mouth shut. So why is Mickey Costanzo dead? You'd have to ask Cody, said Tony Frato. I don't know his motive. [27:02] If I knew [27:04] I'd be more than willing [27:06] to say why. [27:08] So it would make sense... Is he just a lunatic or what? I mean... [27:12] I don't know. [27:13] I don't have an answer for that. And when he says he doesn't know, [27:17] Why? [27:18] Do you believe him? No. He's gotta know why.

There's a reason. [27:23] Why? [27:25] He did this. [27:26] And it wasn't. [27:27] get rid of Michaela, so... [27:29] to please you. [27:31] No. [27:33] So did she avoid Cody once he was off in jail before her own arrest? This man she was so afraid of? No, she didn't. Jail calls are recorded, of course. You are... [27:49] In a good mood. [27:50] They were lovers once, engaged to be married in the Mormon church, planning for a family. But now, Toni told us she was trying to cleanse herself of Cody Patton.

You think about him much? Yeah. [28:13] you [28:13] You know, I... [28:15] I'm just doing my best to [28:17] Move forward. [28:19] No, I don't. [28:21] want him [28:22] a part of [28:23] me and my family's life anymore. [28:25] Is that your mind? He's out of my mind. There are times that, yes, things pop up, but I'm just working on healing myself. Of course, Mickey Costanzo's family will never heal, nor likely ever be satisfied with justifications or regrets. No. [28:45] that Tony Frato tries to offer. [28:48] Not a day. [28:49] that goes by that I don't think about what happened.

[28:53] I know sorry is not enough. [28:55] If I could go back, I would. [28:58] and protect her and [29:00] She would still be here today. [29:02] Can you see her face now? [29:04] In your mind's eye? It's in pieces, yeah. Probably be seeing her for a long time. [29:11] the rest of my life. [29:15] And with that, our interview ended. Toni Fratto never wavering from her latest story, the one that could set her free. [29:24] even sooner than she thought. [29:30] Ten years after Mickey was kidnapped, [29:32] beaten and stabbed to death in the Nevada desert.

Tony Frato sat for another interview [29:37] this time at a meeting of the parole board, whose members had the power to release her. [29:44] So, would they? [29:53] Your morning starts, your coffee pours, the city moves. [30:00] But beneath it all, something else is moving. It's Energy Transfer, one of America's largest pipeline companies, transporting oil, natural gas, and refined products across the US. These products keep homes warm, businesses running, and everyday life on track. [30:15] People rely on energy transfer to safely deliver oil and gas whenever and wherever it's needed.

[30:20] Learn more at com. [30:23] You know, one of the nice things about Hertz right now is that they have a whole fleet of new cars. So whatever trip you're planning, it's easy to find a new car that fits your adventure. [30:33] Heading out for a sunny drive? Then a new convertible with very little roof is for you. [30:38] Considering a fishing trip with your mini-me? Then you need a new minivan that's anything but mini. [30:44] And if you're planning on some stargazing, a new SUV will give you plenty of space.

Get paired with our newest fleet yet at com. Every day brings somewhere to be, and everyone counting on you to get them there. With seating for up to seven, the 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee L keeps busy schedules moving, from early practices to late night games and the triumphant ride home. Available 4x4 capability helps you drive safely and confidently when weather shifts or plans change. [31:14] the memories you cherish in the 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee L. Jeep and the Jeep Gorilla registered trademarks of FCA US LLC. [31:31] They were sent to separate prisons.

[31:33] Cody Patton to one end of Nevada, Tony Frato the other. Two different stories about the murder, too. And two quite different penalties. [31:45] Cody Patton is a hardcore lifer. For years, he was locked up at the Ely State Prison, a place so notorious, so dangerous, some call it the graveyard. [31:56] Then in January 2026, he qualified to be transferred to a medium security facility, a safer, less violent prison. [32:06] Meanwhile, Tony Frato, from what we could tell, has kept a low profile at the women's prison outside Las Vegas. [32:12] Unlike Cody, Tony has possibilities, parole possibilities, [32:19] And in 2021, she took her first step [32:22] towards freedom.

[32:24] Good day, ma'am. State your name and your NDOC number for the record, please. [32:27] Tony Fratto, 1092636. [32:32] Remember, Tony was given consecutive sentences for both murder and the use of a deadly weapon, which meant she would have to serve time separately for each conviction, a minimum total of 18 years. So this parole hearing was just for the murder charge. If parole was granted, she'd begin serving time for the weapons conviction. [32:54] We're all here on a discretionary parole hearing to receive a sentence of what appears to be 120 months to life imprisonment.

[33:04] Tony was 28. Prison had aged her. Still petite but pale, her dark curly hair cut short. With her parents looking on, she wept through her testimony. Wept without visible tears. [33:21] My actions were wrong. [33:23] And I just hope that one day I can give back and that I can show the people that I can [33:29] in society who I am today, [33:33] and not who I once was. [33:35] - All right, obviously this was a crime that was, it's kind of beyond the pale here. What was your frame of mind?

[33:41] when this was occurring here. [33:43] I was not in a healthy state of mind at the time. [33:48] I was not... [33:50] thinking of the consequences, [33:52] I was not thinking of the pain [33:55] and the hurt that I was going to cause this family. Was still causing, 10 years on. This was Celia to the parole board, just as she had pledged to do when Tony was sentenced. [34:09] years earlier. [34:11] Tony was in a position [34:14] multiple times to stop [34:17] what happened before Michaela was ever killed. She was not pressured into just going along.

She got in that vehicle. She knew what was going on. She made the choice to take my daughter out in the middle of the desert, [34:33] slit her throat, [34:35] She should paint the same price [34:37] my daughter [34:38] get a life. [34:40] for life. Didn't take long. Parole was denied. And then three years later, they did it all again. Good morning. Could you please state your name and NDOC number for the record? [34:55] Tony Fratto, 1092636. [35:00] In February 2024, she was back in front of the board for the second time.

Tony looked a little different by then. [35:07] Her hair was long and stringy, [35:10] her face thinner, [35:12] expressionless. [35:14] I would just like to say that I... [35:18] Apologize to the family. [35:21] that I am sorry for their loss. [35:24] And I want to let them know that I am doing time for them. [35:29] family. [35:30] Can you even begin to empathize with the loss that they've suffered in their lives? [35:36] I can't even come close. [35:39] And then, again, the commissioners asked the question: Why? Why kill that innocent young woman?

[35:49] One of the things that strikes me is there were so many chances for you to take the off-ramp. And you didn't. [35:55] Why is that? [35:56] I regret that every single day of my life. [35:59] And... [36:00] The only thing I can say is I was scared and I wish I would have. [36:04] Been strong enough. [36:07] to take that stand. [36:09] And... [36:10] save her life. [36:11] Let me ask you this. If it was someone in your family... [36:15] If the roles were reversed, would you want that person to get out of prison?

[36:21] No. [36:23] Once again, parole was denied. [36:29] Tony's next hearing will be in 2028. She'll be 36 then. Half her life behind bars. Well, Cody Patton is going to die in prison someday. [36:43] You want to say that either one of those two? [36:45] First off, I want them to look at me in the face and tell me why. And it better not be some... [36:55] S. [36:56] that they pull like they did on their... [36:59] Confessions. I want the truth. [37:01] Will I ever get it? No. [37:03] They'll never tell me.

[37:04] I want them to know [37:06] that if it were possible for me every day to make their lives hell, [37:12] I would. [37:14] Because they deserve to be in hell for doing that. [37:18] And there is nothing they can say or do that will make it better. [37:22] They cannot fix this. [37:27] Three families broken in West Wendover. I feel for Michaela's family. I feel for Cody's family. I feel for Tony's family. This is lead detective Kevin McKinney. They're all devastated. [37:42] You know, the frattles and the patents are just as devastated as the Costanzos in this case.

Three families have been torn apart by this. [37:49] *music* [37:51] Cody Patton will never come home. [37:53] Toni Fratto might someday, but probably too late for her parents. [38:00] I don't think I will... [38:01] still be alive when she gets out. [38:05] I don't think that there will be a time that we'll be together like that again. [38:13] At West Wendover High School, they still remember Mickey. Her basketball and track uniforms have both been retired in her honor. Outside is a huge rock painted green. [38:26] a memorial in her favorite color, [38:28] signed by dozens of her classmates.

[38:31] A college scholarship fund has also been established in Mickey's memory. [38:36] It's called "The Spirit of Friendship: Honoring the Life of Michaela Costanzo." [38:42] you [38:43] And up in the high desert mountains overlooking West Wendover is a ranch with a small family cemetery. [38:52] a peaceful, [38:53] sacred place. [38:55] The ranch is home. It's home for Mikayla, it's home for DJ, it's home for me. And now it's where Mikayla is. Yes. [39:03] She's exactly where... [39:06] she would want to have been. She's laying right next to my father. And she is in the most beautiful spot in the world.

[39:16] to me [39:18] She's like sitting on top of the world. [39:23] And on the little strip along Interstate 80, that giant neon cowboy Wendover Will still waves his grinning welcome. But he points to a place a little older now and sadder. [39:36] as if the neon light strung up among desert casinos had picked up a layer of grief. [39:42] after that night in the desert, five miles from home. [39:53] - Five Miles From Home has been a production of Dateline and NBC News. Robert Dean is the producer. Brian Drew, Marshall Hausfeld, and Meredith Greenstein are audio editors.

[40:06] Molly DeRosa is associate producer. Adam Gorfane is co-executive producer. Paul Ryan is executive producer. [40:14] And Liz Cole is Senior Executive Producer. [40:17] From NBC News Audio... [40:19] Sound mixing by Rich Cutler. [40:30] - In a country that never stops moving, reliable energy is essential. People need oil and natural gas for heating, transportation, and everyday items like clothing, cell phones, and contact lenses. [40:41] Behind the scenes, one of America's largest pipeline operators, Energy Transfer, works all day, every day, to transport the energy that our communities depend on. Energy Transfer invests in modern infrastructure, as technologies like AI drive greater need for reliable natural gas.

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