Forensic Files (TV Series) The Day the Music Died (2007) User Reviews

The Day The Music Died

[a_baron · 8/10 · 2 April 2015]

Mia Zapata was lead vocalist with a charmingly named Seattle punk band called The Gits. In May 1993, she wrote a song in the first person singular about being murdered by a serial killer. Two months later she was raped, beaten and strangled. This short documentary covers the search for her killer, who took over a decade to bring to book. It speaks to the lead detective on the case, the prosecutor, fellow band member Steve Moriarty, and Mia's still grieving father.

The March 2004 conviction of Jesus Mezquia was contingent on two things, a foresighted pathologist, who recognised the victim, and the development of an advanced DNA technique by Kary Mullis. This documentary presents concisely the facts surrounding this sick and unnecessary murder of a girl whose name would certainly have been better known than it is today but for premature demise. Not mentioned here is the fact that she became yet another member of the infamous 27 Club.

Insufficient Evidence

[yippy00100 · 26 September 2011]

The comments I'm about to make abut this episode may be a spoiler for some viewers. Basically, I don't see how any judge or jury could convict a person of murder based on the evidence this episode said the prosecution had. It's not even close. The main piece of evidence, the DNA supposedly proving that the convicted man's saliva was found on Miss Zapata's person, no matter where it was found on her person, does not constitute proof of murder, plain and simple. Secondly, the fact that the convicted denied having ever seen Miss Zapata in no way "seals his fate" legally, as one of the investigators in the episode tries to claim. He may have had any number of reasons for denying he knew or saw her. To claim that was all that was needed to prove his guilt is preposterous and creates the suspicion of a conspiracy. And lastly, there is this supposed piece of circumstantial evidence that the convicted was identified as the man who exposed himself to Miss Zapata a relatively short time before the murder. Soon after making this claim, the episode then surmises that the convicted was "cruising the streets" the night of the murder and came upon Miss Zapata by chance. Well, what are the chances of that, really? That he happens to come upon the very woman he exposed himself to in a city the size of Seattle while randomly cruising the streets. Either this is a very poorly done episode, or it is the kind of thing that starts conspiracy theories. Or both. I still gave the episode a ranking of 8 because of who it is about, and the inside look we got at the music scene in Seattle at the time. One more note. Miss Zapata was said to have written and performed a song about being killed by a serial killer shortly before this actually happened. People with creative and artistic minds, I believe, do sometimes pick up on things most people do not, but those signals have to come from people they have contact with. Even if the accused had exposed himself to her, I don't believe that is enough contact for one to receive the signal subconsciously, "I mean you further harm". This episode gives me grave doubts as to whether or not this murder has been solved, and makes me suspicious of a cover up.