Scott Weinberger

I'm Scott Weinberger, investigative journalist and former deputy sheriff.

I'm Scott Weinberger, investigative journalist and former deputy sheriff.

And this is Anatomy of Murder.

And this is Anatomy of Murder.

As we probably all know, sometimes those occasions can bring challenges too. There's all of the anticipation, the buildup, the preparation. And before you know it, the event is over and it's back to the day-to-day, the routine.

As we probably all know, sometimes those occasions can bring challenges too. There's all of the anticipation, the buildup, the preparation. And before you know it, the event is over and it's back to the day-to-day, the routine.

Today's story starts with a birthday and ends in tragedy. And what should have been a day marking new beginnings would come to leave a family broken and lives shattered, including that of a one-year-old baby girl.

Today's story starts with a birthday and ends in tragedy. And what should have been a day marking new beginnings would come to leave a family broken and lives shattered, including that of a one-year-old baby girl.

Chad had enjoyed a diverse career within the Pensacola Police Department. He had risen through the ranks, spent a few years investigating white-collar financial crime, and now was a part of a team of detectives assigned to major crimes. But the case that landed on his desk in June of 2018, it wasn't yet a crime at all.

Chad had enjoyed a diverse career within the Pensacola Police Department. He had risen through the ranks, spent a few years investigating white-collar financial crime, and now was a part of a team of detectives assigned to major crimes. But the case that landed on his desk in June of 2018, it wasn't yet a crime at all.

Cassandra and her daughter Evelyn had been living with the child's father, a man by the name of Henry Steiger, in a middle-class neighborhood in Pensacola called The Avenues. It certainly wasn't an area that Chad and his colleagues would regularly be called out to.

Cassandra and her daughter Evelyn had been living with the child's father, a man by the name of Henry Steiger, in a middle-class neighborhood in Pensacola called The Avenues. It certainly wasn't an area that Chad and his colleagues would regularly be called out to.

It was one of Chad's colleagues who first spoke to the father of that child, Henry Steiger, a man that was 28 years Cassandra's senior. Top of his list of questions, when did you last see the mother of your child?

It was one of Chad's colleagues who first spoke to the father of that child, Henry Steiger, a man that was 28 years Cassandra's senior. Top of his list of questions, when did you last see the mother of your child?

Now, according to his statement to detectives, Henry was less surprised. The couple had never been married, and in fact, Henry was not even listed as the father of the baby on the birth certificate. And this had been the source of some friction in their relationship in the past.

Now, according to his statement to detectives, Henry was less surprised. The couple had never been married, and in fact, Henry was not even listed as the father of the baby on the birth certificate. And this had been the source of some friction in their relationship in the past.

But there was also the possibility that Cassandra's sudden departure was not a case of abandonment, but one of escape. That's because, according to her sister, Cassandra's relationship had been more than just rocky. It had, at times, become violent.

But there was also the possibility that Cassandra's sudden departure was not a case of abandonment, but one of escape. That's because, according to her sister, Cassandra's relationship had been more than just rocky. It had, at times, become violent.

And so armed with what they had learned from both Henry, the child's father, and Cassandra's sister and friends, they began their search for the missing woman, a search that started, like so many do these days, online.

And so armed with what they had learned from both Henry, the child's father, and Cassandra's sister and friends, they began their search for the missing woman, a search that started, like so many do these days, online.