I saw this case again on tv today, and was intrigued enough to do some follow-up. The two Canadian 18 years old boys, Atif Rafay and Sebastian Burns, were committed to life in prison without parole for the mid 1990's killing of the family of Atif Rafay. The family was killed to collect insurance money and the house to finance the film they wanted to make, which was about murdering people as well. Rafay's family had lived in B.C. and then moved to Washington state and lived there for 8 years. After the murders the boys did not attend the funeral, and took a Greyhound bus back across the border.
Apparently there is an appeal to be heard this month.
What is unusual about the case is that the boys gave a confession to undercover cops in B.C., Canada, and were extradited after a six year battle to the state of Washington where that confession, which would not have been allowed in the States (it's entrapment), was allowed in by the judge in their trial in the States.
The affluent family of Sebastian Burns is saying that the boys would never have been convicted without that confession. They believe the confession was coerced out of fear, and was a false confession. As well, they state that Atif would have been making enough money in a few years to finance their film because he was attending an Ivy League university and was a brilliant person. His family wasn't as wealthy as Sebastian's family, so why didn't they then kill Sebastian's family instead? Sebastian Burns' sister, Tiffany, a former newscaster, has put together a documentary about the confession, and the way in which it was obtained, and her documentary has been getting a lot of play in Canada and other countries:
http://www.timescolonist.com/entertainment/Victoria+Film+Festival+boosts+careers/4181266/story.html?cid=megadrop_story
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/columnists/story.html?id=c64d3b35-869b-4049-8b1f-5939c51032ea
Broadcasters in Washington state apparently won't air it because it doesn't show the other evidence submitted at trial. According to Burns' supporters there was no forensic evidence linking the two to the crime. Burns' family believes he and Atif are innocent and that a political Muslim group killed the family in retaliation for some political influence Atif's father wielded.
The tv show I saw showed the boys confessing to the undercover cops, and they didn't look fearful to me. Atif even laughed when talking about how Sebastian killed his autistic sister. Footage showed Atif laughing and giggling when asked by reporters about the murders. As soon as the boys got the insurance money they were quick to buy a fancy car and other expensive items. They also seemed to go to extremes to concoct their alibi. They made sure they were noticed at a movie theater by acting obnoxiously. As well, when at a restaurant they tipped eight dollars on a five dollar bill. The jury determined that if they left the movie theater right after the start, they had enough time to do the murders. Sebastian had been a lead role in a play called "The Rope" which was about a boy killing his family.
Here are some links about the case itself:
http://www.seattlepi.com/default/article/Rafay-Burns-are-convicted-of-murder-1145787.php#page-2
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Burns