Not Charged (and Featured as a Front Page Article in the Arizona Republic) | Felony First Degree Murder Dangerous (with Gun)
State v. Ms. L (DMC No. 16795)
MARICOPA COUNTY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE (FILE NO. 1706841) AND SCOTTSDALE POLICE DEPARTMENT (DR NO. 17-07052)
Ms. L and her husband were both research Doctors at the Mayo Clinic in North Scottsdale. Although they had been married for over 20 years, their marriage was strained and they remained together in order to raise their four children. It was not uncommon for Ms. L and Mr. L to sleep in different bedrooms on opposite sides of the house. Because Ms. L was often alone, she purchased a gun from the Scottsdale Gun Club and took a single shooting lesson and she then locked the gun in its case under her bed.
On the night of the incident, Ms. L was in one bedroom, and Mr. L was in another bedroom. There were also four other people in the household (three family members and one guest). The next morning at 8 o’clock, Ms. L went into Mr. L’s bedroom, and discovered that he had taken her gun and shot himself under the chin approximately three times.
When police arrived, they automatically assumed it must have been a homicide, because there were three gunshot wounds, and not one. They cut out drywall towards the back of the bed and in the ceiling in order to do a Blood Spatter Analysis. They also took DNA samples from all members of the household and questioned everybody. All parties in the house stated that they did not hear any gunshots at any time.
DM Cantor got involved in the case, and we immediately received Mr. L’s psychiatric records from Ms. L. He had suffered from depression for years, and had even been admitted to a psychiatric hospital due to his severe depression. He also received psychological counseling for approximately five years, and took Lithium at one time. It was also discovered that shortly before his death, he had transferred all of his money to his own sister (which would be indicative of planning for his suicide).
Later, the gun was tested and showed only Mr. L’s DNA on the device used to load the bullets into the magazine of the gun; the trigger of the gun; the grip of the gun; and the magazine of the gun. Also, it appeared that his DNA was on the safety of the gun. None of Ms. L’s DNA was found on the gun, magazine, or gun case.
Later, at a Department of Child Safety (DCS) Hearing regarding who would provide care for their minor child who had special needs, the Lead Detective was cross-examined by us, and testified that it was quite possible Mr. L had committed suicide. We provided a Blood Spatter Analysis, along with a Shooting Reconstructionist Report, to the Detectives. We also sent them a study that included 50+ suicides in the US involving multiple gunshot wounds (up to 5 gunshots), showing the Detective it is not uncommon for a “suicide by gunshot” to require multiple shots fired by the decedent.
Other family members were convinced that Ms. L had committed a Murder. The Arizona Republic was involved, and ran a full multi-page story in the Sunday paper. We were interviewed, and provided our exculpatory evidence (along with the shooting study), and it resulted in a high-profile press conference from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office where they “turned down” prosecution. Ms. L could have been facing anywhere from Life in Prison to the Death Penalty, and instead she remains a free person today.
