Dateline NBC made its way to Boyle County as the show airing Friday night focuses on the June 2004 murder of Jesse Valencia, aka Jesse James Wade Valencia, a 22-year-old University of Missouri student who was killed by 28-year-old Steven Rios, a police officer in Columbia, Missouri.

Valencia was born in Boyle County and much of his family remains in the Boyle County area. He graduated from Boyle County High School in 1999.

Although he still maintains his innocence, Rios was convicted of first-degree murder in 2005. The conviction was overturned in 2007, and he was granted a retrial because of hearsay statements that were ruled inadmissible in court, according to reporting from the Missourian.

He was convicted again in 2009 and is serving two consecutive sentences: 30 years for murder and 23 more for armed criminal action.

The case has been featured in other television programs, including a program on the Investigation Discovery Channel in 2013.

The program, titled “Before Daylight,” airs on NBC Friday night at 9 p.m. It can also be viewed after the initial airing on the NBC Dateline website.

 

How to Watch

DirecTV and DISH – Local Channel 18

Spectrum – Channel 8

Online at nbc.com