Dateline Reveals the Inside Story of the Case of the Notorious 1990 NYC Subway Murder, Featuring Holt’s Interviews with Hincapie, Including An Exclusive TV Interview In Prison One Year Ago
Special Hour Presents Exclusive Footage From the Manhattan Supreme Court Hearing That Led to Hincapie’s Case Being Overturned
“Tipping Point” Airs Friday, October 23 at 9pm/8c on NBC’s Dateline
NEW YORK – October 21, 2015 – On Friday, October 23 at 9pm/8c, NBC’s Dateline will air “Tipping Point,” a new report four years in the making, hosted by NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt. The episode features two revealing interviews between Holt and Johnny Hincapie, including an exclusive TV interview in which Holt sat down with Hincapie a year ago, when he was incarcerated at New York’s Fishkill Correctional Facility. The special report also features Holt’s conversation with Hincapie hours after a judge overturned his conviction.
“Tipping Point” presents exclusive footage from inside the Manhattan courtroom, never before seen by the public, of the testimonies from Hincapie and one of the witnesses who played a pivotal role in getting his case reversed. Holt also spoke extensively with key individuals involved in the case; Hincapie’s family, lawyers Ron Kuby and Leah Busby, NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton, and two people who were instrumental in the re-investigation, writer Bill Hughes and former Parole Board Chairman, Bob Dennison.
Hincapie was imprisoned for 25 years for his alleged role in the 1990 stabbing death of a Utah tourist, Brian Watkins, on a subway platform. Watkins’ murder galvanized New York City during the most violent year in its history. According to Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, the Watkins case was a tipping point in NYC law enforcement that prompted the hiring of thousands of new police officers and helped lower the city’s crime rate over the past 25 years. Hincapie recently made headlines when he was released and granted a new trial in October of this year. A judge overturned his conviction based on new evidence challenging his presence at the crime scene, and his contention that his confession to the crime was coerced by a detective.
Watch a preview of “Tipping Point” here: http://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/video/preview-tipping-point-547416643647
Excerpts from “Tipping Point” follow. If used, mandatory credit NBC’s Dateline with air date.
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JOHNNY HINCAPIE ON HIS RELEASE FROM PRISON IN OCTOBER 2015:
I’ve been thinking about how beautiful it is to be free again in New York City. Watching the cars go by, the lights in the tree. It’s a lot of nostalgia, you know, and I’m grateful for it.
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JOHNNY HINCAPIE, SPEAKING WITH LESTER HOLT IN PRISON, IN OCTOBER 2014:
HINCAPIE:
When all my appeals were finished. I literally got down on my knees, Lester, and I told God, ” I don’t wanna be here anymore. I don’t wanna live.”
HINCAPIE:
I had no involvement in this crime, so it’s very, very important to me that my name is cleared.
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NYPD COMMISSIONER BILL BRATTON ON THE IMPACT OF BRIAN WATKINS’ MURDER ON NYC:
BRATTON:
It was a seminal case for me. It allowed us to have a tipping point impact.
BRATTON:
I truly believe that the death of that young man was the propelling catalyst for the New York miracle that we’ve experienced the last 25 years.
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Dateline NBC is the award-winning newsmagazine known for its distinctive storytelling on a wide range of topics from true crime investigations and mysteries, to breaking news reports and special series. It airs on NBC in primetime and reaches an average audience of 7 million viewers and is followed by more than 2 million across social media platforms. David Corvo is the senior executive producer, Liz Cole is the executive producer and Lester Holt is the primary anchor of “Dateline NBC” (Fridays at 9pm/8c). Follow Dateline NBC on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @datelinenbc and on Snapchat at dateline.nbc.
For more information contact:
Brianne Beers
NBC News
