Sep 14, 2026 · 27 min · 14 segments
Deborah Roberts and Dr. Darien Sutton unpacked the biggest 20/20 cases where true crime and medicine collide. Hear expert analysis into the twists, the science, and how justice was ultimately…
Darien SuttonGuest
Deborah RobertsHost
When we report on 20/20 on true crime, um, you know, there are a lot of, uh, witnesses, people who have experienced trauma, and then sometimes sexual assault survivors who wind up talking to us about their stories, and it is really, um, just not only, um, just something to behold when people are able to be strong enough to talk with us about what has happened, but, you know, you can't underestimate the trauma that people have gone through.
You see a lot of crime, I guess, the, people who come in who have been involved in crimes, and also trauma.
And, you know, you've got to sort of sort through that, too, and while it may not necessarily be part of an investigation, as a doctor, you're, you're caught up in y- you know, these pivotal moments, too, right? That could actually involve some criminal activity.
Justice and, and clinical medicine kind of meet each other in the emergency room.
You know, we're treating patients of abuse, treat patients of assault, patients of neglect.
No one wakes up in the morning and goes, "Oh, today's a great day to come into the ER." And I think I have to respect that when I'm talking to people, that many times this is the scariest part of their life.
If not, uh, probably the scariest part of their day, if not their month, if not their life.
So I wanna make sure that I respect that and I understand what that might feel like, even though I'm sitting in the emergency room day after day.
And I think it's so important to take a step back and say, "Wait a minute, this is new to everyone-
When we report on 20/20 on true crime, um, you know, there are a lot of, uh, witnesses, people who have experienced trauma, and then sometimes sexual assault survivors who wind up talking to us about their stories, and it is really, um, just not only, um, just something to behold when people are able to be strong enough to talk with us about what has happened, but, you know, you can't underestimate the trauma that people have gone through.
You see a lot of crime, I guess, the, people who come in who have been involved in crimes, and also trauma.
And, you know, you've got to sort of sort through that, too, and while it may not necessarily be part of an investigation, as a doctor, you're, you're caught up in y- you know, these pivotal moments, too, right? That could actually involve some criminal activity.
Justice and, and clinical medicine kind of meet each other in the emergency room.
You know, we're treating patients of abuse, treat patients of assault, patients of neglect.
No one wakes up in the morning and goes, "Oh, today's a great day to come into the ER." And I think I have to respect that when I'm talking to people, that many times this is the scariest part of their life.
If not, uh, probably the scariest part of their day, if not their month, if not their life.
So I wanna make sure that I respect that and I understand what that might feel like, even though I'm sitting in the emergency room day after day.
And I think it's so important to take a step back and say, "Wait a minute, this is new to everyone-
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