June 12, 2007

Caught In The Crossfire

Who Is To Blame For A Wife's Death And A Judge's Shooting?

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(CBS)  The much-anticipated murder trial will not get underway until later this year, and Mack’s attorneys say they’ll spare no expense to defend their client

Chesnoff says Mack's net worth is zero and that he is in bankruptcy. But the lawyers are not taking the case pro bono. "He has a lotta friends and family that care about him," Chesnoff says.

Eight months after the violent events of that June morning, many still wrestle with the fallout, like custody litigation expert Dean Tong.

"What has this case done to the father's rights movement in this country?" Roberts asks Tong.

"And it's certainly slapped me in the face," Tong says. "How dare you be a martyr for this, for what we've worked so hard for."

But Michael Small, released from jail and back home with his new wife and family in Reno, disagrees with Tong. "Do I think the movement has been set back? Just the opposite. I think it’s just going to go forward and be more in the forefront,” he says.

Darren Mack, though now behind bars, still sees himself as a father’s rights advocate. His daughter, Erika, visits him in jail and had been living with Charla's mother.

Charla's friends Ann and Christine says Erika doesn't like to talk about her mom, but knows the circumstances surrounding the murder and that her father has been charged with the killing.

"She also hears a lot of comments from Darren's friends and family that try to instill doubt in her mind. And so, now she has made the comment, 'Well, we don't know if my daddy killed my mommy.' She said, 'Maybe the cat did it,'" says Ann.

Erika is now nine. While prosecutors will try to avoid it, Erika may be called to testify against her father at his murder trial.

"I think that Erika should know that her mother wanted nothing more than to raise Erika. Erika was her number one joy in life," says Christine. "And her not being here has nothing to do with her not wanting to be here. She wanted to raise her and watch her grow and be a part of her life forever."



Charla’s mother and Darren's mother were fighting for custody of Erika. A court ruled, but its decision has been sealed.

Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty for Darren Mack.


Produced By Mary Noonan, Mead Stone, Marc Goldbaum and Lourdes Aguiar
© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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