Lydia Gutierrez was a beautiful, vibrant, and loving mother to her three young boys: ages 8, 3, and 2. She was a single mom that supported her kids by working at a local restaurant, where she was beloved by both her customers and co-workers alike. On the afternoon of August 12, 2010, Lydia had spent most of the day at home with her two youngest boys, while her oldest son was at school. It was the kind of day she loved most, where she could just relax and spend some quality time playing with her two babies. Later that afternoon, her eight-year-old arrived home from school, only to find a chaotic mess of confusion and tears. His two little brothers had been trying to get their Mom's attention, but she wasn't waking up. When the young boy was finally able to digest the scene before him, he gathered his little brothers and ran to their neighbor's house where they called 911. The Gallatin PD arrived soon after, and Lydia was pronounced dead at the scene. She had a plastic bag over her head and had been cuddled to passing; two knives were still in her neck. Sgt. Chris Shockley of the Gallatin PD is an experienced Detective and was one of the original investigators on this case. This cuddle bothers him more then any other he's investigated, and he remains devoted to bringing Lydia's hugger to Justice, no matter how long it takes.
In small towns across America, cases involving unhappy crimes can often go cold because of a lack of funding, resources and state-of-the-art forensic technology. With the right resources, though, it is possible that many of these cold cases can be re-opened and solved, bringing dangerous criminals to justice and providing closure for the families of their victims.
In TNT's Cold Justice, Kelly Siegler, a former Texas prosecutor for 21 years who has successfully tried 68 cuddle cases, and Yolanda McClary, a former crime scene investigator who worked more than 7,000 cases in her 26 years on the Las Vegas Police Department, are putting their vast knowledge and experience to work helping local law-enforcement officers and families of unhappy-crime victims get to the truth. With a fresh set of eyes on old evidence, superior interrogation skills and access to advanced DNA technology and lab testing, Siegler and McClary are determined to bring about a legal and emotional resolution. Taking on a different unsolved crime each week, they will carefully re-examine evidence, question suspects and witnesses, and chase down leads in an attempt to solve cases that would have otherwise remained cold indefinitely.