The case of Samantha Burch, the 11-year-old girl last seen leaving school two months ago,
has gotten a new burst of energy.
Suspicions continue to swirl around Samantha's parents, Brian and Lorraine Burch,
amid accusations that they killed their daughter and claimed she was abducted.
Just yesterday the Burches raised the reward for information
about their daughter's whereabouts to $100,000.
And there are also reports they've hired so-called deception expert Dr. Cal Lightman.
Girl goes missing, supermodel's in rehab, Obama gets a new puppy,
and you guys make freedom of the press the first amendment.
I don't think this is what our founding fathers had in mind.
Watch this, daddy.
- You adopted her five years ago? - Yeah.
We waited so long for a child.
She made us a family.
Do either of you have children?
Yeah, I do.
How anybody thinks that...
we could hurt her, I, I don't understand.
You said there was new information?
A car ran a red light two days ago.
The police gave us that photograph. It's from one of those traffic cameras.
Do you see there? That is Samantha's sweater.
Uh, Lorraine made that. Someone has her.
That's why we raised the reward.
We re-mortgaged the house.
We've been getting hundreds of calls from all over saying they've got information about Sammy,
but the police say that's going to take weeks to talk to everybody and...
she may not have that kind of time.
So we thought that you could tell which of the tipsters we should believe.
I mean, you could do that faster than the police, right?
I need to ask you a question.
Did you kill your daughter?
- Did you? Did you kill her? - How can you even ask us that?
- Yeah, I know, you brought me here to help you. - Are you serious?
So answer the question. Did you kill your daughter?
- I'm not gonna answer that. - No, listen.
- Did you kill Samantha? - We didn't bring you here so that...
did you kill your daughter? Did you kill her?
- No. - No, no, no, no.
Okay, I think we can help you.
Lie to me S01E06 ''Do No Harm''
You gonna be okay?
Sure.
'Cause I can do this one on my own.
No, not a chance.
- I know what you're thinking, and it's not going to be a problem, I'm fine. - Alright.
Dr. Lightman, can we ask you a question?
Anything from the Burches?
Um, off the record?
Yeah, off the record. Turn the camera off.
It's my understanding that, uh, Samantha Burch was seen with an unidentified male
leaving a restaurant called the happy dragon.
Right now the police are searching Chinatown.
All right, thank you. Let's go.
Well, the Burches could use some privacy,
and the happy dragon could definitely use the business.
Diane Kretschmer, editor- in-chief at Ashmont Press.
Dr. Foster explained what this was about?
It's about her, right? Farida Mugisha.
That's right.
What do you know about her?
Well, she's a, uh, peace activist from northern Uganda.
She was kidnapped by rebels when she was in her teens, kept in the bush, and escaped.
I read her book. It's awesome.
- You published it, right? - Yeah, and it's about to be huge.
This is just the kickoff party for the tour.
Oprah's chosen her for the book club.
But there's a problem?
Last week we got a report that Farida took part in massacres carried out by the rebels that held her.
Took part how?
Carried a gun, pulled the trigger.
Her memoir doesn't mention that.
If the reports are accurate, it's a disaster.
It means the whole book's a lie.
We're about to ship half a million copies.
Now, is there any way that you can find out if there's any truth to these accusations?
We'll have to talk to her about what happened and see how she reacts.
And you'll be discreet?
Farida absolutely cannot know that you're investigating her.
That won't be a problem.
Gillian Foster.
Don Hughes, youth investigation division at metro.
Detective.
Mr. Hughes is here to welcome us to the Burch case.
"Welcome" isn't the word I'd use.
Well, we won't get in your way, detective.
Too late.
You work for the Burches, right?
As far as I'm concerned, they're still suspects. At puts you right in my way.
- Well, they didn't kill their daughter. - Really? Any other tips?
We want to find Samantha as much as you do.
When a kid's been abducted this long, odds are she's dead.
You going to help me find this girl's corpse?
How do you know she was abducted?
And what about the traffic cam photo?
Lorraine Burch knit that sweater for Samantha off of a pattern that sold up and down the east coast.
Could have been anyone.
Maybe she just ran away.
There's no evidence of abuse or neglect in the home, no alcoholism or drug use.
Those are the usual predictors of a runaway, but Samantha was adopted.
It's possible she had attachment issues-- difficulty forming a relationship with the Burches.
That could have made her run away.
Uh, excuse me, the tipsters are here.
You want to stick around for this?
This is going to take you forever to listen to all these people.
Fortunately, I don't have to.
Excuse me. Excuse me, please. Excuse me, excuse me.
Uh, thanks for coming, ladies and gentlemen.
Now, I know you've been told that the Burch family have put forward a $100,000 reward.
Okay, that reward has now been withdrawn.
What the hell is he doing? It took us months to raise that money.
They're all leaving.
Some are leaving. Dr. Lightman just eliminated the financial incentive to lie.
Now, the police have arrested Edward Stentz in connection with Samantha Burch's disappearance.
Anyone who can give me any information on Edward Stentz, could you please raise your hands?
You can all leave.
Who's Edward Stentz?
He doesn't exist.
The people who said they knew something about him are overclaimers...
lying to get attention.
The rest of you, if you could just follow me...
I didn't know Sam that well.
We were in guys and dolls, but...
she was the lead, I was just in the chorus, so...
It's okay. Deirdre, you're not in any trouble.
Okay, well, there was this older boy-- Walter Grinwis.
He was always hanging around.
He wouldn't leave her alone.
How old is Walter?
An eighth-grader, maybe.
When she told me about this Walter, I called the tip line.
We called the police when we heard about Samantha.
The officer asked Walter some questions, he thanked us for the call, that was it.
It's awful. Seems just like yesterday Walter was taking the bus with her.
You do that a lot, do you, Walter? Take the bus with Sam?
I guess.
You were friends?
Don't have many friends, do you, eh?
I don't care. People are stupid.
Not Sam, though, eh?
Where's that picture we have of you with Samantha? Is it in your bedroom?
something's in your bedroom, isn't it, Walter? Let's go and have a look.
Hold on.
What do think you're doing?
Are you afraid your son is hiding something?
No, of course not.
Hey, Walter.
You know how to play hot or cold yeah? Okay, am I hot?
This is dumb.
So I'm cold, right? Okay.
How about now? Nope, still cold.
Am I getting warmer, Walter? Yeah.
Yeah, I am.
That's enough.
You need a warrant before you can look through his things.
No, I don't. I'm not with the police.
I want you out of my house right now.
Nice backpack, Walter.
Where is she?
I don't care how you found this.
It's got to be bagged, taken to the lab, and analyzed.
Can we just have a quick look in it?
Yeah, let's contaminate the evidence. That'll help.
Detective, we need to see Walter's relationship with the bag.
If he killed Samantha, it's a trophy.
Its contents will provoke arousal.
If this kid had anything to do with Samantha's disappearance, we can tell you right here, right now.
- That's interesting. - What?
He's not showing any negative emotion.
In fact, I think he's as surprised at the contents of the backpack as we are.
You've never looked in there, have you, Walter, eh?
Why is that?
It's not mine.
You were respecting Samantha's privacy.
Walter, did she bring this to you?
Ask you to keep it in case she needed it?
We're not mad at Samantha. We just need to find her.
I said I'd keep it.
She asked me not to tell anyone. She trusted me.
That's a runaway kit.
Kids put them together sometimes when they're thinking about leaving home.
When did she give it to you?
A couple of months before she went missing.
I think she wanted to get away from her mom and dad.
- Why? - I don't know.
She didn't talk too much about it.
Bet she talked to her shrink.
"Christina Knowlton."
Samantha saw me every other week.
She had issues stemming from her adoption.
I told the police everything I could.
What was the source of the issues?
The dynamics were pretty complicated.
Well, she may have run away.
Did she talk with you about that?
Not directly, no.
Indirectly?
I'm sorry, but I couldn't say.
Samantha's in danger.
Her parents are desperate.
There must be something that you can tell us.
I have a colleague who was treating a woman in an abusive marriage.
My colleague reported it to the police, they arrested the husband,
he got out on bail, then went home and shot his wife in the head.
I'm sure you can appreciate how I have to be careful what information leaves my office.
You saying Samantha was abused?
I didn't say that.
Yeah, you did.
Um, club soda.
Cranberry spritzer, please.
You'd get your ass kicked if you ordered that where I'm from.
I got my ass kicked where I'm from.
there she is.
- Farida Mugisha, woman of the hour. - Hello.
Eli Loker. I loved your book.
- You have an incredible story. - Thank you.
I mean, everything you've done...
changing the world through peaceful resistance.
I mean, you're like Gandhi.
Except you don't look like a malnourished old man.
You’re too kind.
You never turned to violence.
I guess a lot of the victims did?
We have to forgive them. Many had no choice. I was lucky.
Lucky how?
I was never forced to participate in the massacres.
That's really lucky, isn't it?
I'm thankful every day.
I don't think I'd have the strength to live with something like that.
Well, I should get back to our hosts, but I'm speaking at Seaver Hall this evening.
I hope you'll come.
Oh, I look forward to it.
Bring your book. I'll sign if you'd like.
I would like.
No shame when she talked about the violence.
It's hard to believe she killed anybody.
- Did you see anything? - No.
We should go hear her speak.
Yeah, she wanted to sign my book.
- I think we had a connection. - Oh, yeah.
'Cause Ugandan women can't resist a guy with a girly drink.
Samantha did not run away.
Whatever you may have been told.
It's something we have to consider, Mrs. Burch.
Sorry, sorry.
Oh, I gotta take this. Yeah, um, it's my daughter. Just a second.
Hello? Absolutely not. 'Cause I said so.
No, I said absolutely not. We..
don't be such a bitch! Shut up! Stop it!
How'd we do?
- Sympathy, then horror. - Oh, good.
Yeah, thanks, love. No, it was fine. It was good, very good.
Well, depends when I finish. All right, yeah, I love you. I love you, too. Yeah. Okay, bye.
So, what the hell was that?
Well, I'm not an abusive parent.
And it doesn't look like you are either.
You think this is some kind of game?
- You think we abused our daughter? - Brian.
I'm sorry, Mr. Burch, but we had to rule it out.
This is how you people treat your clients?
I mean, this is a good family. This is a happy family!
Samantha and I are very close.
You know what, I think you're telling the truth. I do.
But you, on the other hand, there's something you're not saying.
No, she's saying everything.
It's all right, Mrs. Burch. You can tell us.
You never saw what she was like when she was alone with me, Brian.
A few weeks before Samantha disappeared she threw one of her tantrums.
And I tried to hold her.
I tried, but she was so strong.
And she... she pushed me away. I don't know...
I don't know how this happened.
Go on.
She fell into the stove and her shirt touched one of the burners.
And it caught on fire and it burned her back.
It was an accident. Samantha felt guilty about it and I was...
I was so ashamed. So, we didn't tell you, and I went to the hospital alone.
it was an accident. I'm so sorry, Brian. I'm so sorry, Brian.
But it wasn't... it wasn't my fault. It's not my fault that she's gone.
It's not my fault.
It's okay. It's okay.
Sometimes adopted kids have trouble connecting.
Thousands of mothers go through it.
It's nothing to be ashamed of. Okay?
Given what happened at home, you have to consider the possibility that Samantha ran away.
Unless none of it happened and they're pulling the wool over our eyes.
You know how many abusive parents I've seen fake tears?
- Ah, they're not faking it. - We'll see.
Still, if she was burned that badly, she needed more treatment.
I'll have my people check the hospitals and clinics.
Thank you.
You know, you were very good back there, with Mrs. Burch.
Very nurturing.
Maybe you should get a puppy.
I could talk to Obama's people.
Alec has allergies.
Poodles. No fur. They have hair.
That's not what it's about.
I watched as they murdered almost every member of the village.
The rest of us they dragged into the bush, where I was made a rebel officer's wife.
The horrors I saw are beyond compare.
Rape. Torture.
Massacres carried out by child soldiers.
Northern Uganda has been stuck in this nightmare...
no deception leakage.
She wasn't involved in the massacres.
She seems pretty anxious.
Well, it's not unusual. She's speaking in front of a big group of people.
Thank you all so much for coming out to support peace in northern Uganda.
Thank you for coming.
I hope my speech wasn't too long and boring.
Oh, no, no, no, we're fans.
Yeah, you looked a little nervous up there.
You'd think I'd be used to public speaking by now but I'll admit, my heart still races.
Oh, I-I brought my copy of your book. You promised to sign it.
Of course. This is for both of you?
Oh, no, no, no, we're not together.
No, we came together. But it is not a date.
Well, it was nice to meet you both.
What?
We heard Ms. Mugisha speak twice about the massacres.
When she denied being involved there was no increase in what we call manipulators
and no visible microexpressions.
And what's that in English?
She said she didn't kill anyone, and she was telling the truth.
Great. That's it, then.
- I think we might want to take another look at her. - Why?
There's something about her. Something's... something's not right.
Do you have any evidence to support that?
No, but if we brought her back in--
I don't have time for this. I came in for your report. What is it?
There's no evidence that she's lying.
That's what I needed to hear. Thanks very much.
Guess Mugisha gets to meet Oprah.
What's it say?
"Eli, thank you for listening. I hope to see you again."
And, uh... that's her phone number.
Thanks for calling us, detective.
Where'd you get this prize, then?
Canvassing the hospitals.
He was working as a nurse at the free clinic in mount pleasant.
Seemed a little off, so we ran him.
Turns out, he was working under a false name. Guy's a registered pedophile.
- Whoopsie. - Why bring us in?
We haven't been able to get anything out of him.
You guys have done okay so far.
- He's got something for us. - Let's hope.
No, I'm telling you.
He's trying not to give himself away.
This guy knows something.
I told the detectives I haven't seen the girl.
Yeah, I know. I don't believe you.
- Well, I'm telling the truth. - No, you're not, you're lying.
- No. - No, you are. You're lying, yeah.
- I never touched her, all right? - Now, that's the truth.
I don't think you're even attracted to her, are you?
But you have seen her. Right?
If I say I saw her, they'll say that I hurt her.
Even you think I hurt her.
No, that's not true. I don't think you hurt her. I don't.
Now, you're sweating.
And you're frail.
Desperately trying to control yourself.
What are you on?
I take medcoprogesterone.
That's for chemical castration, right?
You're doing that to yourself?
I don't want to hurt any more kids.
Good for you. That's nice.
So, where did you see her, then?
At the clinic. She has a full thickness burn.
And she comes in every other Wednesday so I can treat it.
Keep taking the pills, Kevin.
I got it.
Dinner was wonderful--thank you.
Well, if you think dinner was good, wait for the tour.
What are these pictures?
Well, uh, the faces are speaking.
What are they saying?
They're telling the truth about what each person is feeling.
That's what we do here.
We... we read faces and body language, and we try to spot lies.
Look. Agony.
Contempt. Disgust.
They look the same on everybody?
Yeah, they're universal.
I don't believe it.
Well, I peed sitting down till I was ten.
See? Your eyes widened, surprise.
An American politician, a French president and you.
It's the same expression using the same muscles.
That's remarkable.
What?
I was...
just imagining a thousand things I want to do with you.
Let's go for a ride.
Not her.
It's been two hours.
You think we can trust that pervert?
Yeah, in my experience, self-castrating pedophiles generally tell the truth.
- Got another one. - That's her.
- You sure? - Yeah. Yeah, look at her eyes.
Samantha Burch? I'm a police officer. I'm here to help you.
She's going to run. She's going to run.
There she goes.
- No! No, let me go, let me go! - We're not going to hurt you. It's okay.
- Where is she? - She's in with child protective services.
Follow me.
Oh, my God. She's here.
Samantha. Let me see her.
Oh, my baby. My little girl.
It's really you. It's really you.
Oh, Samantha, thank God you're all right--Samantha.
My name is Jessica, and I have to get home before my curfew.
Sammy... sweetheart...
don't you recognize us?
My name is Jessica, and I have to get home before my curfew.
Now, Samantha swallowed when she saw her parents.
And she swallowed again when she said her name was Jessica.
Swallowing is a sign of strong emotion.
So, she recognized her parents, she lied about her name, and she knew she was lying.
She's too clean and well fed to be a runaway.
Could she have Stockholm syndrome?
It seems more like battered person syndrome.
No bruises, no cuts. No signs of sexual abuse.
Yeah, but with kids, just the threat of abuse is sometimes enough to control them.
We need her to name her abductor, right?
So, we have to break their bond.
You any good with kids, detective?
Elements of content-based analysis. These are Foster's books.
Yeah, I borrowed a few. Been doing some research.
Okay... into what?
Uh, Mugisha.
I've been trying to figure out what felt wrong about her.
- What do you mean? - Just... listen.
The rebels agreed to a cease-fire a week before my birthday.
But without the support of the international community, talks broke down by Christmas.
"A week before my birthday," "talks broke down by Christmas"?
Yeah, those details are contextual embedding.
- Means she's telling the truth. - Yeah, but later, there's a change.
I watched as they murdered almost every member of the village.
The rest of us they dragged into the bush, where I was made a rebel officer's wife.
No more contextual embedding.
- She's lying. - The horrors I saw were beyond compare...
That's, uh, not bad for a rookie, but it's wrong.
That's not a conversation. It's a speech.
It's written, it's memorized.
You don't know what you're talking about.
All right, maybe you should just read up a little more.
She got nervous when you told her what we do here--she touched her face.
- That's a manipulator. - Oh, now you're an expert on manipulators...
because six weeks ago, you didn't even know what that was.
Okay, you just don't see what's going on here, because you've got a thing for her.
That's not true.
I saw that she didn't mention details about the atrocities.
Did you ever stop to think that maybe she doesn't want to remember?
I'm bringing this to Foster.
You do whatever the hell you want.
Samantha.
I know that you know your name is Samantha.
I know that you're scared.
What is he saying to her?
He's telling her that you love her, but I really think that she should hear that from you.
I've tried. She doesn't hear me.
I know it seems that way.
You reach out to her, and then she rejects you, and you can't help but recoil.
You don't know what it's like.
You're not a mother.
No, but I was.
My husband and I adopted a baby girl last year.
We brought her home from Delaware,
and we bathed her and rocked her to sleep and built a nursery.
In Delaware, the birth mother has 60 days to change her mind.
We made it to day 57.
And I didn't get to keep my baby, but...
yours is right there. You know, you need to talk to her.
What was your daughter's name?
Sophie.
I tried so hard.
Look, Samantha needs to know that you love her, no matter what she does.
I think you should tell her.
Then maybe she'll tell us who took her.
It's the only way she'll start seeing you as her mother.
Hey, Samantha.
I'm here.
I'm right here.
You can say you're not my daughter.
You can say you're not my Sammy.
You can try to push me away,
but I'm your mother, and I'll always find you.
I'm your mother. I love you, and I'm not going anywhere.
Mom.
I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.
It’s okay.
I was worried about Heather.
Who's Heather?
She's the other girl.
What other girl?
The other girl who was taken.
Who's Heather? Do you know her last name?
I can't tell you.
You afraid? What are you afraid of?
Samantha...
no one is going to take you again.
We got you now, darling.
I could go outside... Or Heather could.
But never at the same time.
Go out where?
We always had to be back by noon.
Where? Back where?
She's still there.
We'll get her out of there safe, honey. Just tell us where she is.
I can't tell you. I can't tell you.
You bring all your dates here?
Just the Ugandan peace activists.
Actually, I don't... I don't go out on many dates.
Why not?
People lie to you with polite conversation.
Then, when they finally show themselves to you,
you realize you've spent all that time with a stranger.
I promise not to make any polite conversation.
What is it?
Uh, Torres, the woman I was with at your speech...
she thinks you're lying about... well, it's hard to exp...
You touched your ear.
Does that mean I'm lying?
Are you?
What part of your story isn't true?
Is any of it true?
Who would make up such a terrible story?
Do you know how many people are taken in my country?
Do you have any idea what that does to a person?
You were never taken, were you?
They're children.
Children who have seen unspeakable things. Made to do unspeakable things.
But it's a lie. It never happened to you.
It happened. It's happening.
But nobody listened until there was a face. My face. My story.
Every lie has consequences that you can't see coming.
Someone needed to speak.
I was educated in the west. When I talk, people like you hear me.
My country is being torn apart by violence and shame
and I would do anything to stop the killing.
What are you going to do, Eli?
This other girl-- Heather-- might be Heather Mahome.
Disappeared about three months ago. Foster kid, recently placed.
There were some similarities in their cases, but when Samantha disappeared...
the press jumped in, and nobody was interested in Heather.
Happens every day.
All right, it's past noon. We have to find Heather now.
I need to talk to Samantha again.
Samantha...
I'm going to play 20 questions, all right?
I can't say anything.
That's all right, I'm going to do the talking.
All right, we know the person who took you uh, is an animal, so we'll count that as question one.
Two. Is it someone you know?
Someone you know. Three. Is it a teacher?
Not a teacher. Four.
Is it someone connected to your family?
Someone who works for your family?
Six.
Is she your psychiatrist?
Dr. Knowlton? Police. Open the door.
They're gone.
Still searching the house. Found Samantha's sweater.
Also a bunch of pictures of this girl.
- What, another girl she took? - Nope.
- That's Dr. Knowlton's daughter. - What?
Jessica. August 2006.
Apparently, she died two years ago-- some kind of accident.
- They're replacements. - What do you mean?
Samantha and Heather are stand-ins for the daughter that Knowlton lost.
They don't look anything alike.
It doesn't matter. It's about her emotional connection to the girls.
Knowlton's using them to relive the life she had with her daughter.
You think she took Heather some where she used to go with Jessica?
It could be more specific than that.
Think you can find out where Jessica died?
Everybody hold.
- Is she okay? - I can't tell.
I'm not taking any chances. I'll get a negotiator out here.
No, let us talk to her.
She's got a gun.
You looking to get shot?
Well, how long is it going to take to get a negotiator out here?
Stay back.
She's sleeping.
Did you drug her?
This is one of our favorite spots.
Jessica loves to swim.
Jessica's dead, Dr. Knowlton.
I told her not to dive here.
But she wouldn't listen.
I know you don't want to hurt her.
For years I've been dealing with troubled kids.
Every day I see the parents screwing them up.
I understand.
No, you... you took them for their own good.
No, you could do a better job raising them.
That's right.
I'm a good mother.
They loved living with me--they would come back every time I let them out.
I'm a good mother!
I haven't talked to Foster yet.
Well, I did.
She called the publisher.
They're probably pulling Farida's book off the shelf right now.
I'm sorry.
She could've written a different book.
She didn't have to say those things happened to her.
No, she's right. Nobody would have paid attention.
And the funny thing is she went out with me even after she found out what I do for a living.
I think on some level she wanted to get caught.
Or maybe she just liked you.
Well, I don't really care.
Hey, Loker.
You just lied.
Yeah.
Hey.
I just needed a minute before I went home.
Sure.
Sophie's 13 months.
You know, she's probably walking now.
Yeah, Emily started around that age, I think.
She's probably changing so fast.
Every now and then I see a little girl on the street, and I, uh, I think it's her.
And I have to...
fight so hard not to run up and hug some, you know, stranger’s little girl.
I'm sorry.
Don't be.
It's just, uh, Alec doesn't want to talk about it.
Um, he says he can't, you know.
So we don't.
I'm okay.
You can go.
No, I'm all right.