TV show help police target suspect in Nori Jones investigation

Police are still investigating the cold case of Nori Jones almost precisely one decade after her death, but on Monday afternoon police said the process could not have been possible without the help from one TNT television show called “Cold Justice.”

Pocatello Police chief Scott Marchand and Bannock County prosecutor Steve Herzog said the process would have taken much longer than it did to arrest suspect Brad Scott Compher if it weren’t for the additional $5,000 in funding they received from the Rocky Mountain Information Network, newer technology, and the assistance from the “Cold Justice” crew who helped move the process to the front of the line in the state processing lab.

“Really, what they afforded us was speed – speed more than anything,” Marchand said. “They had the same lab we had access to in Utah, but when we’re talking turn-around time, they’re saying, ‘we need it now,’ and the lab turned it around for them. If it were our money and our time, (the lab) would have sent us to the back of the line.”

Police said the show had been able to play its cards close to its chest without anyone, including members from the police station itself, knowing the details the show was able to uncover throughout the 10 day period film crews were in Pocatello.

Marchand said the crew never even released information as to which case they were working on, but kept Marchand and Herzog in the loop the whole time.

“When this case started to move forward, it started to move a couple of weeks before the film crew got here. Really, what we wanted to do was get this case run-down and solved and do it the right way,” Marchand added.

The show is expected to air sometime in January.

Police arrested Compher on Wednesday, after finding a fingerprint which belonged to him.

Compher is currently being held in the Bannock County jail without bail.

He was first seen in court on Thursday, one day after his arrest, and is scheduled to reappear in court for his preliminary hearing on September 24, however Herzog said he suspects that date could be pushed back by a few months until they collect enough evidence to find him guilty.

Herzog said Compher could face the death penalty, only if a slew of conditions are proven in court.

He added, in order to seek the death penalty, two public defenders need to represent him, who are currently Dave Martinez and Randy Schultheiss.

Police said they are still undergoing the investigation and conducting interviews with key players, before they can reveal any more information surrounding the details of the case itself.