Daughter's story airs on 'True Crime CSI'

Victim's right activist Jacque MacDonald will appear Tuesday on the Investigation Discovery Channel program "True Crime CSI."

The program is scheduled to air at 9 p.m. and will profile the story of Deborah Ann "Debi" Whitlock, MacDonald's daughter. Whitlock was stabbed to death in her Modesto home in March 1988 by Scott Avery Fizzell. Fizzell is now serving 31-years-to-life.

Since the death of her daughter, MacDonald has become a leading victims' rights activist. She founded a television show called the "Victim's Voice," which seeks justice for those affected by violent crime.

A film crew from Toronto recently traveled to Merced and interviewed MacDonald for "True Crime CSI." MacDonald said she hasn't seen the program about her daughter yet.

"They were very, very nice people," MacDonald said of the film crew. "I trust them, and I know they'll do something that will honor both Debi and the police."

Fizzell was 18 when he broke into Whitlock's North Modesto home. He stabbed the 32-year-old woman repeatedly while her young daughter slept in a bedroom. Whitlock's husband, Harold, came home to find his wife dead in a hallway, according to a Modesto Bee article.

For nearly a decade, Whitlock's murder went unsolved.

By 1994, Fizzell had settled in Arkansas and worked at a boat factory. While MacDonald worked to keep the case in the public eye, Fizzell kept a low profile.

Finally, in January 1997, an informant contacted Modesto police and provided information that led to Fizzell's arrest.

Reporter Victor A. Patton can be reached at (209) 385-2431 or vpatton@mercedsun-star.com.

This story was originally published October 22, 2010 at 1:14 AM with the headline "Daughter's story airs on 'True Crime CSI'."