ABOUT INSIDE DATELINE

Inside Dateline is your Web line into Studio 3B, providing you with a personal behind-the-scenes look at how we bring you our stories.

Whether it's a gripping crime tale, a hidden camera investigation, or a celebrity newsmaker profile -- Dateline correspondents and producers spend days, months, and sometimes even years researching and reporting the story. Learn more about what goes on inside our investigations, and find out more about some of the people we've met.

Ann Curry hosts Dateline. Dateline's producers, correspondents and host post here often. Previews to upcoming stories, more information on our reports, and follow-ups can be found on this blog.



'This should be a movie'

Posted: Sunday, March 11, 2007 5:12 PM by Dateline Editor
Filed Under: ,

by Sara James, Dateline correspondent

Sometimes you do a story and think, "This should be a movie."  Sometimes you meet a person and think, "She's a genuine hero."  This is that kind of story.  Melinda Elkins is that kind of person.
 
But here's the interesting thing about such people in real life.  They don't wear "hero" on their sleeve.  When I first met Melinda -- if I hadn't known her extraordinary tale of audacity and courage in the face of overwhelming, potentially life-destroying adversity -- what would have struck me first was simply how much fun she is.  Because Melinda is warm, outgoing,  vivacious.   

But as our talk lengthened, as I heard the details of how her husband Clarence had been incarcerated for years for horrific crimes she didn't believe he'd committed, I saw a steely flash in her bright blue eyes. I glimpsed the grit, the heart, the fire that fueled her, gave her strength perhaps she hadn't even known  she'd possessed.    For me, Melinda was a wonderful reminder that sometimes, with enough hope and determination, you can accomplish the impossible.  Clarence Elkins reminded me that it can also take courage to wait and hope.   And as you'll see, young Brooke is a tremendous example of a person who has borne terrible tragedy and yet greets the world with a bright, dimpled smile and an even brighter heart. 

I am wishing the best for everyone in this story, all of whom have demonstrated grace, character, courage -- and most of all, love.

MAIN PAGE

Email this EMAIL THIS

Comments

My heart goes out to Clarence, Melinda and Brooke. We, too, are a family that does not have closure. My sister-in-law was shot and killed in Barberton, Ohio on Dec. 22, 2004. The case is unsolved with the Coroner's report stating the manner of death as "UNDETERMINED: Shot by unknown person". Our experiences with the Barberton PD & Summit County Prosecutor's office are very similar to theirs. Barberton PD did not even question any neighbors and the "investigation" was just a token investigation. The Barberton PD and prosecuting attorney do not solve crimes. If they did, the true killer of Melinda's mother would be on trial by now and my sister-in-law's murderer would be behind bars. The Barberton PD and Summit County Prosecuting Attorney need to be investigated to the fullest. I hope one day to see justice for Melinda's mother and for my sister-in-law, Veronica Ann Davidoff (Gnatowski).

Annette, Columbus, Ohio (Sent Monday, March 12, 2007 11:24 AM)

I praise Dateline NBC for this story. The family went through such trails and tribulations in their lives to accomplish freedom, in a way they never would have without the will of God's grace and the support of Melinda Elkins. Thank you, Melinda for being a vessel for justice (Clarence) and the injustice of (Summit County). Shame on you Summit County and DA officials, you have managed to destroy and divide a family, I know you must sleep very well knowing your human error caused this trauma. Again, thank you Dateline NBC, for being a vessel of honesty and truthfulness. I am also in a similar situation, when an innocent family member is sentence to life term, with misconduct on the prosecutors, judge and police officers behalf in New Orleans, Louisiana. When will this Misconduct and Unequal Justice stop in the "Judicial System?"

Sheletha A. Howard, Pennsylvania (Sent Monday, March 12, 2007 11:27 AM)

We have the best 'system' in the world, but it is also only as good as those in positions of authority. As with any field, some employees are outstanding, others are not so good,others incompentent.... then character is also involved. Prosecutors are judged on their number of convictions. I think they lose sight of the whole picture and what the truth is...they just see angles of evidence that could result in a conviction. They should have a boss looking over their shoulders, but then the actual District Attorney is elected, so politics are also involved. The one I find most fault with is the JUDGE that refused a new trial based on the new DNA facts. Common sense was thrown out the window.

Ethylene Beard (Sent Monday, March 12, 2007 12:24 PM)

Amazing story. Your tenacity & courage is an inspiration, Melinda, in your quest for the truth to exonerate your beloved husband - against the implacable & coldhearted & definitely scary forces of so-called justice! Definitely a good idea to prosecute the prosecutors in a landmark case to 'encourage' all justice personnel to be more accountable, responsible and thorough! a truly inspiring story of great faith & love ! :} Completely understandable that the remarkable energy & focus that was necessary over such a protracted period ultimately changed the core of your central relationship/s. One prays for the healing of all centrally involved :} & continues also to pray that the murderer cum rapist will shortly be charged given the overwhelming evidence indicating the guilt of violent crime & the urgent necessity to protect others from a violent predator. Blessings & best wishes to all of you :}

Lesley, Melbourne, Australia (Sent Monday, March 12, 2007 12:26 PM)

Where is the wacko lady who lived with the new suspect and she should be held accountable for her inhumane treatment of Brooke. Why is it taking so long to charge the man responsible for this? Please follow up with updates on this story.

Becky, Boone NC (Sent Monday, March 12, 2007 12:27 PM)

The thing that really jumped out at me was the fact the neighbor left a little 6 year old covered in blood on her front porch until she was "able" to drive her home???? I wondered about it from the getgo and that should have been a real clue to the police too. Why on earth did they not investigate the neighbor's life and the facts re her common law husband??? Seems like they did not use any basic investigation techniques - just put the focus on one man and ignored other evidence. To say, Barberton police were incompetent is putting it mildly. I would like to know what kind of training they have and education levels.

Janet Pokrinchak, Sarasota, Florida (Sent Monday, March 12, 2007 12:55 PM)

I would not hold the jury who convicted Elkins accountable since they probably were presented with biased evidence against Elkins. I just wonder who the judge that ruled "because prosecutors had convicted Clarence based on that compelling eyewitness testimony, a jury would’ve reached the same conclusion even if it had known his DNA didn’t match the killer’s." He should be thrown out of his office and should never be allowed to exercise law again.

Phong Vu, Everett, WA (Sent Monday, March 12, 2007 1:15 PM)

I watched your show on sunday night and was very upset with how this family has been treated by the prosecutors of summit county,and barberton police dept.The prosecutors had less evidence on clarence Elkins when they stripped him of his freedom not by his choice but by our so called wonderful justice system. Then to be slapped in the face by yours truly summit counties prosecutor when they tell people they are investigating and doing everything they can to put this at rest. do they really think that people are that stupid? THE PROSECUTORS ARE STALLING IN THIS CASE, THEY HAVE WHAT THEY NEED TO GO FORWARD, YET AGAIN,THEY CHOOSE NOT TO AND IN RETURN THEY ARE DISRESPECTING JUDITH JOHNSON WHO WAS BRUTALLY ATTACKED,AND MURDERED.THEY ARE ALSO DISRESPECTING, CLARENCE,MELINDA,CLARENCE 11,BRANDON ELKINS,AND BROOKE

RYAN, LOUISVILLE, OH (Sent Wednesday, March 14, 2007 7:09 PM)

Quote "The prosecutors have TOO MUCH power!" - that is true, but most important prosecutors have nearly 0% responsibility for wrongdoing. And that not going to change for a while.

Ruslan Vasyliv, Newington, CT (Sent Tuesday, August 07, 2007 6:56 AM)

A compelling story, and a true miscarriage of justice for Clarence Elkins, but parts of it do not ring true.  Specifically the correspondents statements about the basis of the judge's rulings in denying the petition for post conviction relief and for a new trial.  So I searched and found the 9th Circuit Ohio Court of Appeals opinion on the case.  It is clear from this opinion, "State v. Elkins, 2003 Ohio 4522, August 27, 2003", that the courts basis for the ruling was much stronger than the Dateline report would imply.  This sort of coverage may result in an unfair depiction of the trial court in the case and lead to comments such as the one from the individual in Everett Washington above.  Perhaps the prosecutor and judge deserve some condemnation, all I am saying is that this report does not convince me that they do.  All that having been said, an amazing job by a very determined wife, and best wishes to Clarence in getting on with his life.

Fred Avera, Dallas, Oregon (Sent Monday, October 08, 2007 2:09 AM)

I just saw this story on Dateline and I must say it's truly remarkable.  It should be made into a movie.  I love Melinda's determination on finding the killer and freeing her husband.  I would have done the same thing if it were my husband and my mother was killed.  I have really good detective skills by nature and if anybody can find anything it's me in the family.  I would have done the same thing and worked on the case day and night.

It makes me sick how the whole court case was handled and that it went on for as long as it did with him not getting out of jail sooner.  I might have sued if I were in their shoes.

Also, it saddens me that their marriage split up.  I know we can't all expect a happy fairy tale ending, but for some reason I just can't understand why a woman who loves her husband as much as she did to struggle to free him out of jail all those years would just lose love for him after he is freed.  I will pray for them and maybe by some miracle someday they will find love again.

Michelle Moffett, Corvallis, Oregon (Sent Monday, October 15, 2007 6:24 AM)

Is there a financial fund where people can contribute?  Money now could help Clarence bebuild his life and the lives of those who stood beside him all through his nightmare.

Carole Eastaugh (Sent Tuesday, November 27, 2007 5:28 PM)

Melinda Elkins is an AMAZING individual. She is an inspiration to more people than she'll ever realize. Her formidable tenacity has made her the perfect example of the "power of one" -- I will remember the Elkins' story for the rest of my life. When our justice system fails as in this case, I'm at a loss as to why the individuals responsible for having made bad decisions are not held accountable. I've yet to hear of a single judge penalized for continually releasing egregiously dangerous repeat offenders who continue to rape and kill.... With the irrefutable evidence gathered by Mrs. Elkins in this case, it is DEPLORABLE that she was turned away by the courts time and time again. One would be hard-pressed to believe that the powers that be in this case were truly interested in JUSTICE. It's one thing to convict the wrong person, but it's the worst kind of insult to injury to refuse to seriously consider evidence that could prove that an incorrect decision may have been made. The judge in this case should be forced to hang up his/her robe.

James H. West New York, New York (Sent Friday, March 14, 2008 10:14 PM)

They divorced because this "modern day hero" lady, this "role model of the community" just so happened to "fall in love" with one of her co-workers. While she felt compelled to "keep her vow" to find her mother's killers, I guess some vows are a little less important. She is no hero!

Mike Cleveland, West Salem Ohio (Sent Sunday, March 23, 2008 10:02 PM)

She also falsely claimed her boyfriend was violent/abusive. She left her family within weeks of her husband's release.

Dana Sharp (Sent Monday, April 28, 2008 9:11 PM)

We love the barberton police, keep up the good work guys!!! god speed.

lebron james, akron ohio (Sent Sunday, May 18, 2008 3:19 AM)



SEND A COMMENT

PLEASE READ: All comments must be approved before appearing in the thread; time and space constraints prevent all comments from appearing. We will only approve comments that are directly related to the blog, use appropriate language and are not attacking the comments of others.

Message (please, no HTML tags. Web addresses will be hyperlinked):

Your name, city and state (John Doe, Seattle, Wash.): 

 Your e-mail address (jdoe@msnbc.com):

Your website (it's okay if you don't have one):

Remember me? (We'll keep it private)

TRACKBACKS

Trackbacks are links to weblogs that reference this post. Like comments, trackbacks do not appear until approved by us. The trackback URL for this post is: http://insidedateline.msnbc.msn.com/trackback.aspx?PostID=86524