Transcript

Portrait of a Killer | Full Episode

From 48 Hours · Episode page · Watch on YouTube

· 43 min · 5,849 words · 150 timestamped sections

This is the full, timestamped transcript of "Portrait of a Killer | Full Episode", an episode of 48 Hours published February 10, 2026 (43 min, about 5,849 words). It mentions 14 people, works and ideas, including Daniel Marsh, Chip Northup, Claudia Mopin, Chris Campion, Davis, California.

What this episode is about

The narrative delves into a horrific double homicide involving Chip Northup and Claudia, exploring the emotional aftermath and the intense investigation that followed. Despite a thorough search led by law enforcement, the case presented as a "perfect crime" with no forensic evidence, leaving the community in fear and raising questions about the personal nature of the attack.

Key takeaways

  • Insecure in our secure spaces: even the most loving homes can hide unfathomable horrors.
  • Perfect crime? No evidence found, yet a 15-year-old turned to violence—never judge a book by its cover.
  • Stabbing with a flourish: 128 wounds and bizarre experiments hint at more than rage—perhaps a twisted artistry.
  • From church pews to crime scenes: a strong community shattered by a tragic betrayal—who can we trust?
  • Murder in safety’s guise: idyllic cities can't shield us from unexpected brutality lurking within the familiar.

Who speaks in this episode?

What is discussed, and when

  1. – 5:00: Davis, California, Unitarian Church, California, Chip Northup
  2. – 10:00: Chip Northup, Claudia Mopin, Chris Campion, Mary Northup
  3. – 15:00: Daniel Marsh, Bill Marsh, Jeff Risk, Chip Northup
  4. – 20:00: Daniel Marsh, Chris Campion, Ariel Paneda
  5. – 25:00: Daniel Marsh, Chip Northup, Claudia Mopin, Chris Campion
  6. – 30:00: Daniel Marsh, Chris Campion, Chip Northup, Claudia Mopin
  7. – 35:00: Daniel Marsh, Claudia Mopin, Bill Marsh, Andra Pelino
  8. – 40:00: Daniel Marsh, Matthew Logan, California
  9. – 42:32: Daniel Marsh, Chris Campion

Notable quotes from "Portrait of a Killer | Full Episode"

  • Was Chip Northup and he was so smart and brilliant and they were like Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy meeting over the pews at the Unitarian Church and from that moment they were inseparable.
    about Unitarian Church · at
  • Take a ride through Davis, California, and you'll see why the college town has been named one of this country's best places to live, and why Claudia Mop Ben moved here.
    about Davis, California · at
  • Chip was in a local folk band when he didn't show up for a gig that afternoon.
    about Chip Northup · at
  • But all the police would share is that Claudia and Chip had been stabbed multiple times.
    about Claudia Mopin · at
  • Former special agent Chris Campion says that even the FBI profilers were stumped. Unsure if they were dealing with one killer or more or if the open window was even the point of entry.
    about Chris Campion · at
  • Daniel Marsh was a name that Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Risk had heard years earlier, but not in connection with a crime.
    about Daniel Marsh · at
  • At the time of the murders, Bill Marsh lived next door to Claudia and Chip. And I chose that location because it was in walking distance of their mothers.
    about Bill Marsh · at
  • And Dr. Logan says Marsh's testimony did nothing to convince him otherwise.
    about Matthew Logan · at

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

  • Daniel Marsh — Person · Perpetrator / central subject of investigation and sentencing · 22 mentions · first at
    Identified as the 15-year-old who murdered Chip Northup and Claudia Mopin; his confession, mental health claims, and later resentencing hearings drive the episode’s narrative.
  • Chip Northup — Person · Victim (homicide victim) / community figure · 6 mentions · first at
    One of the two murder victims; described as a prominent attorney, Unitarian Church founder, and family patriarch whose death anchors the case.
  • Claudia Mopin — Person · Victim (homicide victim) · 5 mentions · first at
    One of the two murder victims; her family’s perspective (daughter/granddaughter) and the brutality of her death are central to the episode.
  • Chris Campion — Person · Referenced expert / investigator (FBI special agent) · 6 mentions · first at
    Key law-enforcement voice: participated in Daniel Marsh’s interrogation, interprets behavior/intent, and frames Marsh as a psychopath/serial killer in training.
  • Bill Marsh — Person · Family member of perpetrator / key witness (father) · 3 mentions · first at
    Daniel Marsh’s father; provides background (CPR hero story), living situation next to victims, and argues medications/mental health factors in Daniel’s behavior.
  • Matthew Logan — Person · Referenced expert witness (forensic psychologist) · 1 mention · first at
    Testified/consulted on psychopathy traits and assessed Marsh via records; states Marsh meets psychopathy criteria and is likely to kill again.
  • Jeff Risk — Person · Referenced official (District Attorney) · 2 mentions · first at
    Yolo County District Attorney quoted about the shock of a juvenile killer and Daniel Marsh’s earlier public image as a ‘hero’ after saving his father.
    You'll recall that in this case, District Attorney Rice made the decision to try Daniel Marsh as an adult. But under the new law, that decision would now have to be made by a juvenile court judge.
  • Ariel Paneda — Person · Investigator (Davis detective) · 1 mention · first at
    Co-led the interrogation of Daniel Marsh with FBI agent Campion; central to eliciting admissions and building the investigative narrative.
    It was now up to Davis detective Ariel Paneda and FBI special agent Chris Campion to get to the truth.
  • Andra Pelino — Person · Defense attorney (resentencing/juvenile transfer proceedings) · 1 mention · first at
    Named as Daniel Marsh’s attorney arguing for reduced treatment/sentencing under juvenile standards and emphasizing claimed rehabilitation.
    Marsh's original defense team returned to represent him. Attorney Andra Pelino and I think the court will be overwhelmed by the changes that he has made in a very short amount of time.
  • Mary Northup — Person · Family member of victim (daughter of Chip Northup) · 1 mention · first at
    Provides family perspective on Chip and Claudia’s relationship and how the families blended; helps humanize victims beyond the crime details.
    Like Claudia, Chip had been married several times, but according to his firstborn daughter, Mary, the couple's families blended easily.

Products & tech

  • Zoloft — Product · Case study · 1 mention · first at
    Mentioned in the context of Daniel Marsh's defense, arguing that the medication caused temporary insanity.
    Deputy District Attorney Amanda Zambour wasn't having it. But when you actually looked at the medical records, he was having these thoughts and fantasies before he was ever on Zoloft.

Places & events

  • Davis, California — Place · Setting · 3 mentions · first at
    The town where the murders took place, described as a college town and one of the best places to live in the country.
  • Unitarian Church — Place · Setting · 2 mentions · first at
    The place where Claudia and Chip met, described as a significant location in their relationship.
  • California — Place · Setting · 4 mentions · first at
    The state where Davis is located, mentioned in the context of safety and the legal proceedings.
    Victoria Herd says Davis was one of California's safest cities when her mother first arrived in 1995 and started attending services at this Unitarian church, hoping to meet her.

Full transcript with timestamps

the uh master bedroom. It was the most horrific, depraved murder I've ever seen as the district attorney in this county. When you think about the terror that these two people just asleep in their own bed where we all feel the most secure and you wake up to this horror movie happening to you.

Happy birthday. Happy birthday to you. My mom was my best friend. I never remember a day that I didn't speak with her or giggle with her. She was my world. She had been single for a while and she had decided that she was ready to settle down. Well, it wasn't a couple of months and my mother called me and reported to me that she had met a man and his name was Chip Northup and he was so smart and brilliant and they were like Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy meeting over the pews at the Unitarian Church and from that moment they were inseparable.

She didn't want to be away from Chip and and she went with Chip. They went together in their home in their bed. If you talk to many of the officers, they'll say that what an impact this case has had on them. Just going to the crime scene and seeing how horrific the the torture inflicted on these two humans, Chip and Claudia, really was. I was certain that they were going to find some forensic evidence in the crime scene. A fingerprint, DNA, um, shoe prints, uh, something. They found nothing.

How soon did you hear that there was no evidence that this looked like the perfect crime?

Well, I think we were 2 months into it. Yeah. We brought 25 FBI agents, experienced task force officers from other areas, and we really flooded that neighborhood.

We thought it had to be somebody close to Chip and Claudia. Something that um that happened where there was a disagreement, some family dispute um because it did appear to be so personal.

It was a very scary time because nobody knew who had done it. Davis police emergency.

Oh yeah. Um, uh, can this be anonymous? What are you reporting? Uh, double homicides.

When this tip came in, um, it seemed really strange. It didn't seem to match what any of us had thought.

The reason why I want to remain anonymous is cuz if my mom if my mom finds out, she will send me to military school.

Dumbfounded. We were dumbfounded. How do you wrap your mind around a 15-year-old killer? 48 Hours: Portrait of the Killer. Reported by Aaron Morardi. Take a ride through Davis, California, and you'll see why the college town has been named one of this country's best places to live, and why Claudia Mop Ben moved here.

She loved living in college communities, so she loved being around all the young people and all the new ideas. Victoria Herd says Davis was one of California's safest cities when her mother first arrived in 1995 and started attending services at this Unitarian church, hoping to meet her third husband. She had been a spiritual traveler through many different religions and denominations and she just had fallen in love with the Unitarian Church. So she said to me, "My husband is at the Unitarian Church." Claudia soon met Oliver Chip Northup, one of the church's founders. Well known for his social activism, Northup was a World War II veteran and a prominent attorney.

Like Claudia, Chip had been married several times, but according to his firstborn daughter, Mary, the couple's families blended easily.

Claudia had that ability to make every person that she spent time with feel that special so that they would come away and say, "She's my best friend."

Both Chip and Claudia's families were thrilled when the couple decided to marry in 1996. I would think then the church was filled with the family.

It was packed. It was filled. Did you two ever worry about their safety? No. Absolutely not.

No. No. They had an idyllic life. They had so many loved ones around them. They had so many great neighbors. They lived in Davis. Claudia and Chip had been married for 17 years when on the night of Saturday, April 13th, 2013, they said good night to each other for the very last time. The next morning at church, the couple was noticeably absent.

I called and I called his number and I called Claudia's number and they both went to voicemail. Chip was in a local folk band when he didn't show up for a gig that afternoon. Chip's son, Robert, and a grandson paid a visit to Chip in Claudia's condo.

And rang the doorbell, and no one answered. Everything I saw indicated they were out of town.

Robert had a key, but chose not to use it. Later that evening, Claudia's stepdaughter, Laura, also rang the bell. When there was no answer, she went around back and saw this open window with its screen slashed. One looked through the bedroom window and Laura knew that something awful had happened. She saw blood stains. She saw enough that she made a call to get other people over there. The next morning, there's 12 missed calls from my sister. She said, "There's been a breakin and there are two dead bodies in the house."

And then I lost it. My brain couldn't process that. Victoria had to call her daughter Sarah and break the news. But all the police would share is that Claudia and Chip had been stabbed multiple times.

I was like, "Multiple? What does multiple mean?" You know, is there a certain number that we should know? And the coroner said,

"All I can tell you is that multiple means more than 12." It would be just over a year before they learned that Chip had 61 stab wounds. Claudia had 67. That's 128 stab wounds. Has anybody even had the strength to do that? And and why would somebody want to do that? But that wasn't even the worst of it. Davis Police Lieutenant Paul Doris says the killer had experimented with the bodies and had placed a cell phone into Claudia's abdomen and a drinking glass into Chip's stomach. We thought that well maybe there's some type of meaning to it, you know, but we were trying to latch on to every detail we could to help us with this case the office.

But there was little to latch on to. There was no physical evidence, not even a shoe print.

The place isn't ransacked. There's no valuables missing. Clearly, this is not a burglary that was interrupted. Former special agent Chris Campion says that even the FBI profilers were stumped. Unsure if they were dealing with one killer or more or if the open window was even the point of entry.

Appears that the screen is cut through on the edges. I think they had at this point developed a story that somebody with the key had done it and that they'd cut this hole in the screen to divert attention

to make it look like when you if you come up with that theory then you have to look at family members FBI agents had you know called us all individually and you know you could tell that they were doing everything in their power to get answers but there was nothing

until they got to Chip's son Robert and his two sons Oliver and Tony Oliver suffers from schizophrenia.

We lived in the same town, not very far away. It would have not have been logistically difficult for one of us to have gone over there and done that.

Robert also had that key to the condo. Oliver, did you know that the police were looking at you and your brother?

Well, yeah. They asked us to come in for questioning and I agreed. That first day it was about 8 hours of questioning. The next day it was another six. It was just day after day, long hours of questioning.

Mhm. And u and I kept thinking, well, my father would would want us to cooperate in every way

without a lawyer. Were you scared? Very nervous. And with good reason. When police searched Robert's home, they found the kind of evidence that gets people convicted. First, carpeting that had been steam cleaned on the day of the murders. Yeah, it was bad timing. I didn't I didn't anticipate that that would be the same weekend my father got murdered. It looked like I was covering up removing evidence.

Investigators also found a very disturbing drawing by Tony. It was the image of a man with a knife standing over two children in a bed.

The only thing I can say is that the three of them, they're not violent. If if something had clicked and turned them violent, it would never have been for these two people.

Did either one of you think that was possible? No. Never. Never. Not for a second. Because Chip spent so much time with those boys. Those boys adored him.

The family spent thousands of dollars hiring an attorney for Tony and repairing all the damage done by investigators. Then they cut out the carpet. They took out some of the plumbing fixtures looking for things that might have been put in the drain. And they also took out a little bit of flooring.

The Northup family, Tony in particular, felt persecuted. And even though his name was eventually cleared, Tony still felt that neighbors had their doubts about him. 3 years after the murders, he would commit suicide. Oliver got this tattoo in memory of him.

You've gone through a lot, haven't you? Yeah, I think so. 2 months after the murders, police got this call.

What are you calling to report, sir? Um, the double homicide that happened in Naple this year.

What can you tell me about that? Everything, actually. A 17-year-old Davis High School student called to say he knew who killed that couple. It was his best friend,

Daniel Marsh. Daniel Marsh. Yeah, Daniel Marsh or Dan Marsh. Daniel Marsh was a name that Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Risk had heard years earlier, but not in connection with a crime.

All of a sudden, he passed out and sort of flew back in. At the time he was viewed as a young hero. He had saved his his father's life,

right? He was the hero of the day. At 10, Marsh was given an American Red Cross heroes award after using CPR to save his father from a heart attack.

I remember thinking at that time, this kid's going places. It didn't seem possible. Could that young hero really have grown up to be the vicious killer investigators were hunting for? When you first saw Daniel Marsh, what was your reaction?

Total shock that a a boy was responsible for these crimes. No one imagined, says District Attorney Jeff Risig, that the depraved killer of Chip Northup and his wife Claudia might turn out to be a 15-year-old teenager. And certainly not this teenager who had once saved a life, his father's, Bill Marsh.

This is Daniel in 2009. At the time of the murders, Bill Marsh lived next door to Claudia and Chip. And I chose that location because it was in walking distance of their mothers.

That's where Daniel lived at his mother Sherry's house. And it's where he was staying on the night of the murders. The day the bodies were discovered, Bill Marsh was home recovering from back surgery when police showed up at his door.

Knock knock knock on the door. Hi, I'm so and so of the police. Um, do you know Chip and his wife? I said, "No, I don't know anybody. And I just moved in.

About 2 weeks after the murders, Bill Marsh says he could no longer afford the rent and moved out.

Remember very vividly one of the neighbors came up and said, "Hey, um, I don't know if this is relevant or not, but several days after the murder, the guy in that house moved out." And we didn't think much about it at that time. And investigators might never have focused on Daniel Marsh if not for that phone call from 17-year-old Alvaro Garab 2 months after the crime accusing his best friend of murder.

Well, he talked about killing people a lot. I didn't really take it seriously until well killed someone.

So, help me understand that this was your best friend. I know. Uh I don't know if I can help you understand that. Alvaro says he laughs when nervous. But back then, investigators took him very seriously. He seemed to know way too much about the murders. Gory details known only to a handful of investigators and the killer. He cut both of them open. It's just to see the insides or something. And then uh he went to the woman, I think, and he uh he wanted to know how an eye looked like. So he tried taking it out with a knife, but he said it was really hard, so he couldn't do it.

Gabbe was interviewed twice, leaving investigators wondering if he was the killer.

Why did it take you until now to speak to us? Because I don't know, actually. I was afraid. Alvaro says he finally came forward because Daniel had threatened to kill again. Do you think your life was at risk?

Oh, yeah. Mine, my families, my friends. On June 17th, 2013, investigators asked the high school resource officer to bring Daniel Marsh in for questioning.

Daniel, and he seemed more than happy to talk. It was now up to Davis detective Ariel Paneda and FBI special agent Chris Campion to get to the truth.

Did he seem worried about talking to you at all? No, certainly not at the beginning. I think he figured he could talk his way through it.

What do you know, Dave? I just know that somebody broke into this old couple's house and stabbed them, killed them. Investigators would spend the next three hours learning all they could about Daniel, looking for a way in.

I was that loner kid that you know how there's always that one outcast. Dad and mom split when you were pretty young.

Yeah. And then mom basically left, abandoned you, your family is Yeah. For like 3 or 4 months. Daniel's mother ended her marriage after having an affair with a woman, Daniel's kindergarten teacher, which enraged the 10-year-old.

He hated her. He would tell me that I know this woman was involved in my parents' divorce, and I just want to like strangle her to death.

Daniel even tried taking his anger out on himself. I used to like harm myself. I see a scar too there. Yeah.

Yeah. As near as I understood the cutting phenomenon, it was people who just kind of have this flat, depressed, kind of dark outlook on life. And the cutting actually brings that sense of living.

Campion says Daniel was willing to do anything to feel something, including starving himself. All the pain and depression and anger just like I internalized it and I directed it towards myself.

Daniel was voluntarily committed to an eating disorder clinic for 25 days. And while his anorexia seems to have passed, Alvaro says Daniel's anger continued to consume him. He would tell me a lot about suicide.

And how old were the two of you? When was it? Oh man, I think 14. I've attempted it four times in my life.

It seems there were several therapists and doctors who intervened, trying numerous medications. And then in mid December 2012, Daniel made a stunning admission, telling a school counselor that he fantasized about killing people. She was so concerned they brought the police to the school.

Marsh was shortly hospitalized, but upon release things got worse. Did he talk about Kelly?

He like brought it up more. He was just like, I wish that person would die. But in his police interview, Daniel was denying it all, including the murders of Claudia and Chip.

I don't want to hurt people. Then after 3 hours and 38 minutes of questioning, the facade finally began to crumble. And

why the heck would you just sit here and baldfaced lie to Ariel and me? I am. You guys are threatening me with what? The truth. Getting arrested for two murders. I am so scared right now. Of course, I'm going to do anything I can to try and say that I didn't do this.

That was um the first sign that he was getting over that wall, that he was getting ready to talk to us about what really happened.

If you want to help me, then don't ruin my life. If anything, send me to the psychiatric hospital.

But Chris, were you really prepared for what he told you next? Um, no. Every time I look at someone in my mind, I see flashes of images of me killing them. For more than three hours, Daniel Marsh insisted he knew nothing about the murders of Claudia Mopin and Chip Northup. But he began to reveal more and more about himself to agent Chris Campion.

And all this time I thought about and plotted about killing the woman that my mother left my father for. What was your plan? Just gonna slaughter her throat. Daniel says that was when he began to fantasize about killing people. Eventually, he became obsessed with something called gore porn and a website devoted to it.

I remember just like walking into his room and he was like, "Dude, check this out." And it's like literally people getting beheaded.

And how did he react when he was watching those videos? He just sat there, I think, like fascinated by it. But it's one thing to be fascinated and another to actually take a life.

Well, you strangled a cat in the street. And then I was like, "Okay, well, why'd you do that?" It's like, "Well, I just wanted to do that. It just I hated that cat's house."

In the interview room, investigators still hadn't heard Daniel confess to killing Chip and Claudia and pressed on.

When was the first time you started thinking about killing these people down the street? Yeah, I really am. I didn't.

Now you start thinking about it. That night I just I couldn't take it anymore. I had to do it. I lost control. There it was. The opening that investigator Campion had been hoping for. Daniel admitted that he had been hunting for someone, anyone, to kill that night when he came upon Chip and Claudia's open living room window.

I got a hole in the screen, climbed in through the back, went to their bedroom. I opened the door, and I just kind of stood over their bed watching them sleep for a few minutes. My body was trembling. I was nervous but excited and exhilarated. I was actually going to do it. I was there. It's finally happening.

Without any outward emotion, Daniel described how he repeatedly stabbed Claudia and Chip. What you were about to hear is graphic, but these disturbing details would become key evidence in a family's battle for justice. I cut open most of their torsos around here. And in the woman, I put a phone inside of her and I put a cup inside the guy.

Daniel said it was all part of his plan to confuse investigators and get away with murder. He also taped the bottom of his shoes so he wouldn't leave prints and wore a ski mask and gloves so as not to leave behind DNA or fingerprints. But hidden by Daniel in his mother's house. Investigators found all the evidence they needed. Bloody clothing and the knife used to kill Chip and Claudia.

Did you wash blood off of it or did um that had been fairly covered? And I kept it as a souvenir.

A souvenir to forever remember how much he enjoyed taking two lives. I'm not going to lie, it felt amazing.

In fact, records show that Daniel was doing so much better in school. He was named student of the month after the high of the murders. It was pure happiness and adrenaline and dopamine just all of it rushing over me kind of

after Daniel made a full confession. Chris Campion did something unusual. You um mentioned that pretty much everybody you meet you have thoughts about killing them and how you would kill them.

Yeah. So, how would you kill me? There's a lot of ways. Um, choking you to death with your tie.

Okay. Uh, beating your face into the mirror until it broke and using the glass to cut your arteries. Uh, gouging your eyes out and just smashing your face into the wall. Nothing personal.

Nothing personal. And I said I didn't take it personally because I didn't. That's his fantasy life. I mean, Chris, do you believe that Daniel Marsh was a serial killer in training?

Absolutely. Abs, without a doubt. He actually talked about how he was going to take his next victim.

He was lurking in the streets of Davis at night with a baseball bat, intending to beat to death some poor passer by. cuz I don't feel sympathy for other people at all. Don't feel empathy for them.

This was not the act of a broken child who had a rough life. This was the act of somebody who, in my mind, is just evil.

Daniel was immediately arrested and charged with the murders of Chip Northup and Claudia Mopin. Was there any question whether he would be charged as an adult and be tried in an adult court

at the time? No. Because of the nature of the crime, uh, he had to be tried in adult court.

With Marsh facing life in prison, two top public defenders were assigned to his case. Then Marsh plead not guilty by reason of insanity, something Chris Campion had anticipated. That's why I'd spent some time with him. I wanted to make clear that he's not somebody who had had a break with reality. Um, somebody who heard voices or had, you know, voices in his head telling him to do things.

Did you ever hear any voices talking to you? He wasn't anywhere close, in my opinion, to legally insane.

Even psychiatrist Dr. Matthew Sullier, who was hired by the defense, agreed that Daniel was sane, even though when they met, Daniel threatened to kill him.

I didn't find him to be insane. I found him to be mentally ill, but responsible for his crimes. And I think my understanding is that they went ahead and continued to pursue a defense of insanity. without Sulier as their expert witness. A year after the murders, Daniel Marsh went on trial. The defense argued that the anti-depressant drugs given to Daniel for his anorexia and suicide attempts had caused a temporary insanity.

Zolaf made me do it. Deputy District Attorney Amanda Zambour wasn't having it. But when you actually looked at the medical records, he was having these thoughts and fantasies before he was ever on Zoloft.

Bill, I know that you believe that a lot of your son's problems are connected to the medications he was taking, but he had fantasies about killing before he started on the drugs. He killed animals before he started on these drugs.

Yes. See, I don't know that that's true. There's a whole series of confessions by people who have been on these drugs that have false memories. uh they believe certain things happened that never did.

The question now was would the jury agree? Would they find Daniel Marsh insane and decide a psychiatric hospital was more appropriate than prison?

Were you more nervous about that? Yes. The immediate thought is that somebody would have to be insane to do something like this. On September 26th, 2014, the jury deliberated for just under 2 hours before finding Daniel Marsh guilty of firstdegree murder. They also found Marsh sane, allowing the judge to sentence him to the maximum, 52 years to life.

We are very, very pleased with the verdict for me. We feel justice. We all exhaled.

Yeah. I mean, that was great. But it wasn't over yet, was it? It wasn't over, Aaron. No, it wasn't over. That's because two years later, California voters passed Prop 57 and gave Daniel Marsh a second chance. You'll recall that in this case, District Attorney Rice made the decision to try Daniel Marsh as an adult. But under the new law, that decision would now have to be made by a juvenile court judge.

How do you call a family that sat through an entire trial? How do you call them up and say, "Sorry, you have to come back because there's a chance he may end up being pushed back to juvenile court where he would be potentially released at the age of 25."

A judge would now listen to evidence and decide if Daniel Marsh should have been tried as a juvenile. If so, the state might be forced to set Marsh free on his 25th birthday. He's 21 now. So in about 3 and a half, four years, he would be out with no supervision, no parole. He would just be free. I went into PTSD immediately. And I said, "I I can't do this. I can't do this. I'm moving forward." But before a hearing date could even be set,

a striking video appeared online. Hurt people hurt people. Through a prison rehabilitation program, Daniel Marsh took center stage in his very own TEDex talk.

The secret down deep, deep down, declaring that he's reformed and deserves a second chance.

I came to realize that there are no such things as evil people in this world, only damaged people. And I'm watching it like a deer in the headlights. You know, I can't pull my eyes away.

If I kept allowing myself to be trapped by my emotions and to be disconnected. How dare you? Was all I could say to the screen.

March also took the opportunity to raise a shocking new claim that he was the victim here.

When I was a child, I was sexually abused multiple times by two different people. But he wouldn't say by whom and never even told his best friend.

I don't recall anything like that. He never talked about being sexually abused.

He was asked routinely about trauma and abuse and denied it every time. I believe he wouldn't say it if it wasn't true.

Bill Marsh stands by his son. But why wouldn't he have said it earlier? Knowing Daniel, he probably feels he has some sort of loyalty. I felt alone and ashamed and disgusting.

You don't believe he was ever abused? I don't. Um I think it's a ploy to to get sympathy. Now

embrace our humanity. We knew our first and most important thing to do was to get the video taken down.

Right. Claudia Mopin's granddaughter Sarah took on the challenge and within 48 hours it was gone. It was taken down off of YouTube.

A small victory, but nothing compared to the battle ahead to keep Daniel Marsh behind bars.

All right. Marsh's fate was now in the hands of family court judge Samuel McAdam. Life in prison or possibly just four more years. Let's go on the record in the matter of Daniel William Marsh.

Marsh's original defense team returned to represent him. Attorney Andra Pelino and I think the court will be overwhelmed by the changes that he has made in a very short amount of time.

Remember Dr. Matthew Sulier, the psychiatrist who Daniel Marsh had threatened to kill? He recently interviewed Marsh again and took the stand this time and said he thought Marsh had changed. There were distinct differences in his maturity, his empathy, his insight into himself, his sense of responsibility.

I don't think he's worth throwing away in my opinion. He's killed two people, right?

I mean, isn't it possible that's the kind of person who just can't be saved? I don't believe that. I don't believe that at all.

Just when everyone thought the defense was going to rest its case, the courtroom was stunned. Daniel Marsh had decided to take his fate into his own hands. The families of Chip and Claudia were horrified when a 21-year-old Daniel Marsh took the stand to plead for his freedom.

And I stared at him the entire time. I was a really damaged, screwed up, sick kid. Maybe that's still how I come across. And I really hope that's not the case. Uh

to me, he was doing everything in his power to say the things that would help him in his case.

I mean, it's night and day. You know, I no longer struggle with mental illness. I've worked through the vast majority of my my anger and hate. I I'm not who I used to be.

While trying to convince the judge, Marsh also took the opportunity to address his victim's families for the first time. I'm sorry I took them away from you. I can't even bring myself to look at you.

I think he didn't look cuz he realized he couldn't feain empathy. It It's hard for me to even wrap my mind around how I could have done something that awful. And I guess I've just been afraid to actually face that. But before Judge McAdam would decide if Marsh should be treated like a juvenile and receive a lighter sentence, he asked the prosecution to call an expert on psychopaths.

Dr. Logan, good morning. Forensic psychologist Matthew Logan. Some of the traits are glib, superficial charm, pathological lying, lack of responsibility, uh inability to feel remorse. While Logan never met Marsh, he did examine his records. I spoke to Dr. Logan via FaceTime. Is Daniel Marsh a psychopath?

In my view, yes. After his conviction, Marsh scored a whopping 35.8 out of 40 on the widely used psychopathy checklist, one of the highest scores Dr. Logan has ever seen. means it's generally accepted as the gold standard for for uh diagnosing psychopathy.

Do you believe that Daniel Marsh could kill again and will kill again? I would say it's more likely than not that he would kill again.

And Dr. Logan says Marsh's testimony did nothing to convince him otherwise. I've interviewed hundreds of psychopaths and they've all seen the light. And one of the things that that is very typical of the psychopath is that ability to con and manipulate.

The twoe hearing culminated on October 24th, 2018 when a packed courtroom convened to hear the judge's decision on Daniel Marsh's fate.

Let's go on the record in the matter of Daniel William Marsh. Judge McAdam first sent jitters throughout the courtroom. Marsh is coping well with being incarcerated. He is not exhibiting the signs of a serious mental illness.

He said he found the testimony of Marsh to be credible, but in the end concluded that Marsh's release just wasn't a chance worth taking. Marsh's original sentence would stand.

The defendant is remanded to state prison to serve the balance of an indeterminate life sentence with a minimum of 52 years. You could kind of feel the relief in the courtroom when the judge read his final decision from the family members. So relieved.

I went outside and was like, "Okay, I need to take a deep breath." And I could not catch my breath. And I still feel that way. Mhm.

I still feel that it's not over because it's not. In September 2018, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a new law known as SB1391, which makes it impossible to ever try a 15-year-old offender as an adult, even one like Daniel Marsh. So what 1391 says is that the DAs can never ever prosecute a juvenile that's 14 or 15 years old as an adult. No matter how heinous the crime, no matter what torture they inflicted,

Marsha's lawyers have vowed to do what they can to have Daniel retroactively included under that new law.

We're going to fight that every step of the way. we might lose. And if we do, Daniel Marsh will come back to our county and he will be sentenced as a juvenile where he would be eligible for release at 25. If that happens, the state will have to argue every 2 years to keep Marsh behind bars,

which means a still grieving family may never fully heal. We just went through this entire year having to rehash everything. It was literally like being in the trial all over again and even more so because I had to hear him.

It retraumatizes me every time. Special Agent Chris Campion is just as traumatized at the idea of Marsh ever being set free. Daniel Marsh is in the top three of the people I'm most scared of.

What was your plan? It's going to [ __ ] through. Cuz he's got that combination of being a psychopath and this this deep dark desire for murder and gore and bloodshed. It's

most exhilarating, enjoyable feeling I've ever felt. And it doesn't go away. It just doesn't

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Portrait of a Killer | Full Episode"?

Aaron Morardi (Guest), Jeff Risig (Guest), Chris Campion (Guest), Daniel Marsh (Guest), Bill Marsh (Guest), Amanda Zambour (Guest), Matthew Logan (Guest), Victoria Herd (Guest).

What is "Portrait of a Killer | Full Episode" about?

The narrative delves into a horrific double homicide involving Chip Northup and Claudia, exploring the emotional aftermath and the intense investigation that followed. Despite a thorough search led by law enforcement, the case presented as a "perfect crime" with no forensic evidence, leaving the community in fear and raising questions about the personal nature of the attack.

What is mentioned in this 48 Hours episode?

14 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Daniel Marsh, Chip Northup, Claudia Mopin, Chris Campion, Davis, California, Bill Marsh. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Portrait of a Killer | Full Episode"?

The episode runs 43 min; the transcript is about 5,849 words in 150 timestamped sections.

More from 48 Hours

About this transcript: the episode's spoken words as captioned on YouTube, split into timestamped sections. Reclip.Me locates every person, work and idea in the text, keeps the time it is first named, and quotes the words around it verbatim. Last updated February 12, 2026.