Jesse James Hollywood

All-American Kids

The suspects grew up in an affluent and close-knit community west of Los Angeles called "West Hills." Hollywood and Markowitz were in the same junior baseball league together, and Jesse James' father, Jack, was their coach. His mother, Laurie, attended most of her son's games and practices. It was the kind of apple-pie environment where parents dote on their children, cheering in the stands and taking turns flipping burgers in the snack bar.

The Hollywoods moved to Colorado briefly to start a restaurant in the mid-1990s, but returned to their old neighborhood in 1995, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Jesse James Hollywood is a little guy — only 5'4 tall and 140 pounds. But he compensated for his frame with arrogance and swagger.

His former baseball coach at El Camino Real High School described him as an "emotional kid" who was expelled from school for blowing up at a teacher at the end of his sophomore year.

"Let's just say his behavior was ... very extreme and out of line," Bob Ganssle told the paper.

After the incident, Hollywood transferred to Calabasas High School, where he played on the varsity baseball squad until he injured his back and leg and was forced to quit.

Investigators believe Hollywood started selling dope at least a year before Nick's murder. Soon, his business was booming to the point where he recruited his friends to peddle pot for him.