"CHI OMEGA MASSACRE: TED BUNDY DEFENDS HIMSELF IN THE TRIAL OF THE CENTURY" (Part 2 of 4)

0:03 Callaroga Shark Media. Good morning, I'm Reed Carter. Sunday, November sixteenth, twenty twenty five. Yesterday we covered Ted Bundy's cross country killing spree. Today the trial that captivated America. June twenty fifth, nineteen seventy nine, Miami, Florida, Dade County Courthouse, State of Florida versus Theodore Robert Bundy charged with two counts of first degree murder for killing Margaret Bowman and Lisa Levey at the chi Omega Sorority House, two counts of attempted murder for attacking Kathy Kleiner and Karen Chandler, three counts of burglary. The prosecution had witnesses, physical evidence, crime scene photographs, bite mark evidence matching Ted's teeth to the wound on Lisa Levy's body, and Ted Bundy decided to defend himself.

0:58 He fired his public defenders, told the judge he'd represent himself, act as his own attorney, cross examine witnesses, make objections, address the jury. He was a law school drop out with no degree, no license, no experience, but Florida law allowed defendants to represent themselves. Ted thought he was smarter than everyone in that courtroom, smarter than the prosecutors, smarter than the judge he'd charmed the jury convinced them he was innocent, just like he'd charmed his victims. The trial lasted five weeks, televised nationally. America watched a serial killer defend himself for murder. Ted loved the attention, smiled for cameras, gave interviews, acted like a celebrity, not a defendant facing the death penalty. July twenty fourth, nineteen seventy nine, the jury returned after seven hours of deliberation, guilty on all counts.

1:52 Ted Bundy was sentenced to death in the electric chair, but not before he married his girlfriend in the courtroom, used an obscure floor or at a law that made declarations of marriage legally binding when made in front of a judge proposed during his own murder trial. She said, yes, they were married. The judge was furious, I'm reed, Carter. This is Celebrity Trials. Day two, the trial that made Ted Bundy famous and put him on death row. June twenty fifth, nineteen seventy nine. Judge Edward Cowart, presiding prosecutor Larry Simpson, and assistant state attorney Dan mckever for the state, Ted Bundy representing himself with public defenders Margaret good, Lynn Thompson, and Robert Haggard as advisory council. Jury selection took a week.

2:43 Ted participated actively asked potential jurors about their views on the death penalty, their ability to be impartial, their opinions on pre trial publicity. He was calm, professional, articulate. Jurors saw a clean cut young man in a suit, not a monster. The final jury seven men, five women, all white, all willing to impose death penalty if evidence warranted. Opening statements began July fifth. Prosecutor Larry Simpson laid out the state's case. January fifteenth, nineteen seventy eight, Ted Bundy entered the chi Omega sorority house through an unlocked door, beat four women with an oak log, killed two, all within fifteen minutes, then attacked Cheryl Thomas eight blocks away forty five minutes later, left a trail of evidence connecting him to all three crime scenes. Simpson told the jury they'd hear from eye witnesses, forensic experts, medical examiners, physical evidence, including bitemark analysis matching Ted's teeth to wounds on Lisa Levi's body. The evidence will show that Theodore Robert Bundy is a murderer, a brutal, vicious murderer who killed two young women in their sleep. The evidence will prove his guilt beyond any reasonable doubt. Ted's opening statement was different.

4:06 He didn't deny being in Tallahassee, didn't deny knowing about the Chai Omega murders, but he denied killing anyone. Said the state's evidence was circumstantial, that eyewitness testimony was unreliable, that bite mark evidence was junk science, that police rushed to judgment because they needed to solve these horrific crimes. Ladies and gentlemen, the state wants you to believe I'm a monster, but I'm just a man, a man who's been accused of terrible things, a man who deserves a fair trial. Listen to the evidence, carefully, consider it objectively. You'll see there's reasonable doubt. He was good, confident, persuasive.

4:48 If you didn't know what he'd done, you might believe him. The state called its first witness, Nita Neeri, twenty one years old chi Omega sorority sister who returned to the house at three am and saw the killer leaving. Nita testified she arrived home around three am with her boyfriend, walked up to the front door, noticed it was a jar, unusual but not alarming. Sometimes sisters forgot to lock it. She pushed the door open, stepped inside, heard running footsteps. A man emerged from the hallway carrying something, couldn't tell what. He was. Crouched down, moving fast, turned toward the door.

5:30 For just a moment, Nita saw his profile, sharp features, dark hair. He was maybe five feet away. The man opened the door and ran. Nita heard screaming from upstairs. Ran to investigate. Found Kathy Kleiner and Karen Chandler in their room, both bleeding, both screaming blood everywhere. Prosecutor Simpson asked Nita if she saw the man in the courtroom. She pointed directly at Ted Bundy. That's him. I'll never forget his profile. Ted crossed examined her, asked about lighting conditions, whether she was certain about the identification, how long she actually saw the man's face. Nita held firm, I saw him clearly. It was you. Next witness, Nancy Dowdy, chi Omega house mother, testified she locked the front door at midnight.

6:21 Someone had to have unlocked it from inside or come in through a window. Kathy Kleiner and Karen Chandler testified. Both described waking to pain, seeing a man with a log standing over them, being hit repeatedly. Cathy's jaw was shattered required extensive reconstructive surgery. Karen suffered a broken jaw and skull fractures. Both had permanent scarring permanent trauma. Under cross examination, Ted asked them to describe their attacker. Neither could. Everything happened too fast, too dark, too much pain, but they were certain they'd been attacked by the same person who killed Margaret and Lisa. The medical examiner testified about Margaret Bowman and Lisa Levy's injuries. Margaret died from strangulation pantehose ligature around her neck, skull fracture from blunt force trauma, no defensive wounds. She was likely unconscious before she could fight back. Lisa Levy suffered worse blunt force trauma to the head, strangulation, vaginal trauma consistent with sexual assault, and a massive bitemark on her left buttock. The flesh was bitten so hard it left a clear impression of teeth, upper and lower jaw, individual tooth patterns. Ted objected repeatedly claimed the bitemark evidence was prejudicial, not scientifically valid. Judge Coward overruled him the evidence was admissible. Then the state called doctor Richard Souveran, forensic odontologist expert in bitemark analysis.

7:54 Doctor Suvian testified he examined the bitemark on Lisa Levy's buttock during autopsy, made detailed measurements. The bite showed unique characteristics, chipped tooth on the upper right, irregular spacing in the lower jaw. Police had obtained a warrant for Ted's dental impressions. Ted fought it lost, had to open his mouth while a dentist made plaster molds of his teeth. Doctor Suveron compared Ted's dental impressions to the bite mark perfect match. The chip tooth aligned exactly, the irregular spacing matched precisely. He created an overlay transparent sheet with Ted's tooth pattern and placed it over the bitemark photograph. Every single tooth aligned, in my professional opinion, to a reasonable degree of dental certainty.

8:42 Theodore Bundy made that bitemark on Lisa Levy. The courtroom went silent. This was the evidence that connected Ted directly to Lisa's body. Not circumstantial, not eyewitness testimony, physical evidence, his teeth, his bite, his mark on a murder woman. Ted tried to discredit the testimony, asked about error rates in bitemark analysis, whether other people might have similar dental patterns, whether the impressions could have been contaminated. Doctor Suveran was unshakable. The match is definitive. No one else has this exact dental configuration. Theodore Bundy bit Lisa Levy. This was the first murder conviction in Florida based on bitemark evidence, and it was devastating. The state presented more evidence. Pantyhose found in Ryl Thomas's apartment matched panti hoose from chi Omega.

9:36 Ted took them from the sorority house to use in his next attack. A stolen credit card receipt placed Ted in Tallahassee at the time of the murders. Witnesses saw a man matching Ted's description near chi Omega that night. Ted called no witnesses presented no evidence, just argued the state hadn't proven guilt beyond reasonable doubt, but he did do something unprecedented, something nobody saw coming. He called Carol Anne Boone to the stand. We'll be right back with Ted Bundy's courtroom marriage and the verdict that sent him to death row. Carol Anne Boone, thirty five years old, divorced mother of two, met Ted in nineteen seventy four when they both worked at Washington State Department of Emergency Services.

10:36 Became friends, stayed in touch after Ted moved to Utah. When Ted was arrested, Carol believed he was innocent, visited him in prison, wrote him letters, testified as a character witnessed at his Colorado trial. After his second escape, Carol moved to Florida to be near him, attended every day of his trial. She loved him completely, believed he was framed. Thought the evidence was fabricated, that Ted was a victim of over zealous prosecutors and police incompetence. Ted called her as a defense witness, not to testify about evidence, to testify about his character. She told the jury Ted was kind, intelligent, compassionate, not capable of murder. The jury wasn't impressed. Then during her testimony, Ted did something shocking. He asked her, will you marry me? Carol answered yes, Ted said, then I do hereby marry you. Judge Cowart was furious started to object, but Ted's attorney whispered to him. Under Florida law at the time, a declaration of marriage made in front of a judge with witnesses present was legally binding. No license required, no ceremony needed, just a public declaration. Ted and Carol were married in the middle of his murder trial, in front of the jury on national television. Why did he do it? Control ego media spectacle? Maybe genuine feeling psychopaths can form attachments even if they're shallow, or maybe Ted

12:08 thought a wife would make him sympathetic to the jury. Look at me, I'm getting married. Murderers don't get married during their trials, do they. It didn't work. The jury wasn't swayed. If anything, it made Ted look more manipulative. July twenty third, nineteen seventy nine, closing arguments, Prosecutor Larry Simpson reminded the jury of the evidence eyewitness identification, bite mark evidence, physical evidence connecting Ted to the crime scenes, medical testimony about the brutality of the attacks. Theodore Bundy murdered Margaret Bowman and Lisa Levy. The evidence proves it beyond any doubt, he deserves to be held accountable. Ted's closing argument focused on reasonable doubt. The state hadn't proven he was in the chi Omega house. Bite mark evidence was unreliable. Eyewitness testimony was uncertain. You must be absolutely certain of my guilt before you convict. If there's any doubt, any at all, you must acquit. July twenty fourth, nineteen seventy nine, the jury deliberated seven hours, returned at ten thirty pm. Guilty on all counts, two counts first degree murder, three counts burglary, two counts attempted murder. Ted showed no emotion, just stared straight ahead. Carol Boone sobbed in the gallery.

13:31 Sentencing phase began immediately. Under Florida law, the jury had to recommend either life in prison or death penalty. The same jury that convicted him would now decide if he should die. The state argued, aggravating factors. Ted killed during a burglary. The murders were especially heinous, atrocious, and cruel. He showed no remorse, posed a continuing threat to society. The defense argued, mitigating factors no prior violent felony convictions. In Florida. The Utah and Colorado cases were still pending. Ted was young, capable of rehabilitation. Death penalty was too extreme.

14:13 The jury recommended death twice, once for Margaret Bowman's murder, once for Lisa Levy's murder. Judge Edward Cowart had final say July thirty first, nineteen seventy nine. Sentencing hearing. Ted addressed the court, maintained his innocence, said the trial was unfair, that he was convicted by media hysteria, not evidence. Asked for mercy. Judge Cowart was unmoved, but he did something unexpected. He praised Ted's potential. It is an utter tragedy for this court to see such a total waste of humanity. You're a bright young man. You'd have made a good lawyer. I'd have loved to have you practice in front of me, but you went the wrong way. Partner, Take care of yourself, young man. Then he sentenced Ted to death twice, once for each murder. Electrocution Florida's electric chair Old Sparky. Ted was taken to Florida State Prison death row. His execution date was set from March fourth, nineteen eighty, but appeals would delay it for almost ten years. One month later, Ted went on trial again, this time for murdering twelve year old Kimberly Leech. Same pattern, same evidence, same result, guilty, death sentence. Ted Bundy had two death sentences, no possibility of parole, no hope of freedom. He'd spend the rest of his life in a six x nine cell, waiting to die. The trial made Ted famous national media coverage, television, interviews, books,

15:48 magazine articles. He became a celebrity, the handsome, charming serial killer who defended himself in court, who married his girlfriend in front of the jury, who smiled and waved at camera. He loved it, the attention, the fame, being the center of everything, even if it meant being known as a murderer. Years later, FBI profiler Robert Wrestler interviewed Ted on death row asked him why he defended himself. Ted said, I enjoyed the spotlight. I enjoyed being my own lawyer. I enjoyed the challenge. Wrestler asked if Ted understood the victim's families were in that courtroom watching him perform, seeing him smile and joke and flirt with reporters, watching him marry Carol Boone while their daughters lay dead in the ground.

16:47 Ted said, I couldn't think about that. I had to focus on my defense. No remorse, no empathy, no recognition that he destroyed families, just ego, just performance, just Ted Bundy playing to an audience. Margaret Bowman was twenty one years old, art history major, loved painting, wanted to go to law school. Her mother, Eleanor, testified at sentencing, described Margaret as brilliant, kind, full of life. She had everything ahead of her. Ted Bundy took that away. He took my daughter, He took our future. Lisa Livy was twenty years old dance major. Performed in university productions. Wanted to teach dance to children. Her father testified about the whole in their family. Lisa was our sunshine. Every day without her is darkness. Ted Bundy murdered her in the most brutal way imaginable, and he showed no remorse. None. Kathy Kleiner and Karen Chandler both testified about permanent injuries, chronic pain, nightmares, fear of sleeping therapy for PTSD. Their lives were never the same. Cheryl Thomas testified she could no longer dance, Her equilibrium was permanently damaged, Her hearing destroyed, her dream career over because Ted Bundy beat her with a log.

18:11 These weren't statistics. These weren't Ted Bundy's victims. They were women with names, dreams, families who loved them, and Ted destroyed all of it because he was angry at an ex girlfriend who rejected him. In nineteen sixty eight, Make It Make Sense. That's day two of our Ted Bundy series. The trial that captivated America. Ted Bundy defending himself, marrying his girlfriend in court, bite mark evidence connecting him directly to Lisa Levy's murder, and a jury that needed only seven hours to convict Margaret Bowman twenty one, Lisa Levy twenty Kathy Kleiner and Karen Chandler survivors who carry scars forever. Cheryl Thomas, her dancing career destroyed, Tomorrow death Row, Ted's confessions, the victim's families waiting for justice. And January twenty fourth, nineteen eighty nine, The morning Ted Bundy met Old Sparky.

19:05 I'm reed, Carter. This is celebrity trials