Jump to content

Menu

Is anyone watching the Utah murder trial?


Scarlett
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hi, Scarlett.......I have been following updates about it on satellite radio as I do a ton of driving. It is heartbreaking for the kids and for the mom's family. This afternoon I learned that their teenage son committed suicide a few years ago. It's just so awful.

Oh my word. I missed that. I have ony been watching it a couple of days. Rachaels testimony today was very difficult to watch.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was watching Nancy Grace last week and they were taking about a 16 year old adopted daughter from the Ukraine. After moving in girlfriend/nanny he sent 16 year old back to Ukraine on premise of vacation and then abandoned her.

 

I think it was an aunt that bought her back to US.

Yikes! I hadn't heard that either. Crazy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd seen the headlines, but only just read anything about it.  the man has no scruples.  the daughters are the ones who pushed the police to investigate him for murder.  what a despicable action to do to your own children.  they've lost their mother, and their father is more unworthy of the role than many louses out there.  how incredibly selfish and lacking all parental care.

 

I also think the wife was more attractive than the mistress.   but she probably wasn't adoring enough for him.  she did have children to care for . . . . unlike most mistresses.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Had to look to see which Utah murder trial, because an old one from back in my High School years has just been reopened. (Lafferty, for anyone who used to live here. Guy's in his 70's now, and is trying to get off death row for mental incompetency.)

 

Not watching either one for reasons similar to Diane's, but they are both in my county, so I can't miss the newspaper headlines. (I have a paper route, so they stare at me while I'm folding.)

 

Actually, there's a third murder trial in the county. A young dad, only 20 or so, who flipped out on anti- depressants, and shot his infant son in the head before trying to kill himself. He just got life without parole, with the trial just ending this week. DH went to the little one's funeral with our local B.A.C.A. chapter.

 

Frightening, the places the human mind can go...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd never heard of it, but I don't keep up with such things. I found this older article that gives a lot of background: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700088382/Martin-MacNeill-Was-his-wife-Micheles-death-accidental-or-was-it-murder.html?pg=all

 

truly horrendous. Innocent until proven guilty and all, but his history before and after the death sure don't point to innocent.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd never heard of it, but I don't keep up with such things. I found this older article that gives a lot of background: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700088382/Martin-MacNeill-Was-his-wife-Micheles-death-accidental-or-was-it-murder.html?pg=all

 

truly horrendous. Innocent until proven guilty and all, but his history before and after the death sure don't point to innocent.

Thanks for the link. So, this is THAT guy? I remember the story, but it died down. I suppose it's taken this long to come to trial...
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd never heard of it, but I don't keep up with such things. I found this older article that gives a lot of background: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700088382/Martin-MacNeill-Was-his-wife-Micheles-death-accidental-or-was-it-murder.html?pg=all

 

truly horrendous. Innocent until proven guilty and all, but his history before and after the death sure don't point to innocent.

Wow. I just don't know what to say after reading that. The crazy in some people is just inconceivable.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What a sad and tragic case. I hadn't heard of it before. But I do wonder if the prosecution will be able to provide enough evidence (that's admissible in court) to overcome a reasonable doubt.

 

ETA: I've seen several references to blood at the scene - that the water in the bathtub was reddish or brown, that the victim's clothes and towels from the bathroom had blood on them. But I haven't seen any info about where the blood might have come from - e.g., no injuries mentioned in the autopsy. Is there more evidence on this point?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What a sad and tragic case. I hadn't heard of it before. But I do wonder if the prosecution will be able to provide enough evidence (that's admissible in court) to overcome a reasonable doubt.

 

ETA: I've seen several references to blood at the scene - that the water in the bathtub was reddish or brown, that the victim's clothes and towels from the bathroom had blood on them. But I haven't seen any info about where the blood might have come from - e.g., no injuries mentioned in the autopsy. Is there more evidence on this point?

Pretty sure the blood came from her face lift incisions.

 

I too worry that there isn't enough evidence to convict.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been thinking about this. I dot understand why the new woman assumed the identity of the adopted daughter. What did that gain them? And if they were claiming to be married then, wouldn't that have been considered incest?

I think I missed a lot of this......but my understanding is that it had to do with life insurance fraud.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

I also think the wife was more attractive than the mistress. but she probably wasn't adoring enough for him. she did have children to care for . . . . unlike most mistresses.

I haven't seen photos of anyone b/c I said, I have been listening and not watching. However, early on, I caught a snippet about the husband 'forcing' or insisting the now deceased wife to undergo a face lift because he didn't think she was attractive 'enough.'

 

Additionally, the teenage son's then-girlfriend (and my heavens, has this family suffered!) provided testimony regarding the way the husband 'introduced' the mistress/nanny into the household.

 

Those poor kids.

 

Oh, and I do remember hearing that the husband was heavily in debt and he had taken a life insurance policy on his wife.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The wife was definitely more attractive than the mistress. Even pictures of the mistress from 6 years ago shows her to be less attractive than the wife. And the wife was 50! Same old story....doesn't matter how attractive a wife is or how good of a mother she is or how well she cares for the home or how good of a wife she is.....there are husbands who will cheat anyway. That is bad enough of course....but the cheating husband who then kills his wife and introduces the Mistress into the family as a nanny just 2 weeks after the funeral.....that is a special kind of psycho.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Oh, and I do remember hearing that the husband was heavily in debt and he had taken a life insurance policy on his wife.

decisions, decisions, declare bankruptcy/downsize/be-embarrassed-by-going-backwards-financially - or kill wife and collect life insurance and maintain lifestyle.  how shortsighted.  he certainly can't be accused of thinking with his brain.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I saw a television investigation special (think it was ABC, but can't find it again) on the case done about a year ago.  Dr. McNeill sounds like a sociopath.  He falsified his undergraduate transcripts to get into medical school. Before getting married he ran up all sorts of bad debt writing bad checks, we're talking tens of thousands of dollars and went to jail for it.  After his wife died he sent his adopted daughter back to Ukraine to "visit" her sister. She traveled on her Ukrainian passport and dad kept the US passport.  He than used the passport to get mistress a name change and tried to get the house he owned with deceased wife put into mistresses name. They got caught for that and all sorts of other fraudulent stuff and went to jail, federal prison I think.  I think he did it and is so arrogant he never thought he'd get caught.  I hope they have enough admissible evidence to get a conviction. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Vanessa is testifying now. She is the bio mom of Ada. She is shaking. Very sad. The commentator also said that Vanessa has said her dad told her he would help her kill herself since she struggles with drug addiction. That isn't being allowed I to evidence. What a psycho he is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guilty. Of murder and obstruction of justice.

 

 

I feel relieved for that family. The jury deliberated for 11 hours until 3:00. So interesting to me to watch how different juries do with virtually the same sort of evidence. I didn't feel there was any more evidence in this trial vs Casey Anthony, yet she was aquited.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The wife was definitely more attractive than the mistress. Even pictures of the mistress from 6 years ago shows her to be less attractive than the wife. And the wife was 50! Same old story....doesn't matter how attractive a wife is or how good of a mother she is or how well she cares for the home or how good of a wife she is.....there are husbands who will cheat anyway. That is bad enough of course....but the cheating husband who then kills his wife and introduces the Mistress into the family as a nanny just 2 weeks after the funeral.....that is a special kind of psycho.

 

Sociopath. I think we heard that term with Ted Bundy so much that we didn't realize that there are average, everyday sociopaths that might commit murder, but might also "just" cheat or commit white collar crime or buy giganto homes they can't afford and then disappear etc. etc. etc.

 

Alley

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...