Joe Clyde Daniels case: Emotional interrogation video of Joseph Daniels shared in court

DICKSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WZTV) — More than two years ago TBI agents, loved ones, and hundreds of concerned community members searched for 5-year-old Joe Clyde Daniels. Meanwhile his father was undergoing an intense polygraph test by Agent Ronnie Faulkner with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Agents said the hours long questioning led to an admission from Daniels. He was then charged with killing his son, but later retracted the confession. Now the defense is arguing the polygraph test should be tossed out.

“I would never do something like this,” exclaimed Joseph Daniels. “I would never do something like this. When I got up that morning and discovered he was gone, I was freaking out.”

After a series of questions, asked multiple times, with breaks included TBI agents confronted Daniels.

“You know that you’re not telling us the whole truth,” they said.

Daniels continued saying that he was being honest, while also becoming visibly emotional.

“I don’t know where he’s at, I really don't,” Daniels explained.

At one point he brought up the toddler’s mother, Krystal Daniels, who is accused of covering up the unthinkable. She's facing charges for aggravated child neglect.

“I woke up at 11:30 at night and he peed on the floor when I went to the bedroom,” said Daniels. “I went back to the bedroom and went back to sleep. Then some time during the night Krystal got up. She went out and checked on him and she went back to sleep.”

On multiple occasions Daniels said that he didn't plan or want his son to escape, but that he always feared something like this would happen.

Prior to the interrogation, Daniels described how he was battling bipolar disorder, having difficulty sleeping, and attempted suicide in the past.