Jan. 21, 2026

"THREE SUITCASES, ONE KILLER: THE MELANIE MCGUIRE STORY"

Show Notes
Transcript

Reid Carter exposes the horrifying 2004 murder that shocked America as Netflix's "Suitcase Killer: The Melanie McGuire Story" trends nationwide. New Jersey nurse Melanie McGuire shot husband Bill, dismembered his body, and dumped the pieces in three Kenneth Cole suitcases in Chesapeake Bay. Fishermen found legs, torso, and arms across eleven days in May 2004. Prosecutors proved Melanie bought a .38 gun two days before murder, searched "how to commit murder" online, and had affair with fertility clinic doctor. Despite claiming innocence for 22 years, ballistics experts, forensics, and circumstantial evidence convicted her. Life sentence without parole until age 101.

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WEBVTT

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Callarogus Shark Media, Good morning, I'm read Carter Wednesday, January

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twenty first, twenty twenty six. Sometimes the most horrifying true

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crime cases make the best entertainment. This week, Netflix users

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are binge watching Suitcase Killer, the Melanie McGuire story. The

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twenty twenty two drama is trending nationwide. Viewers can't look

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away from the story of a fertility nurse who dismembered

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her husband and dumped his body parts in matching luggage.

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Except this isn't fiction, This isn't Hollywood horror. This is

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the true story of Melanie McGuire, convicted in two thousand

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and seven of one of the most gruesome murders in

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New Jersey history. May fifth, two thousand and four, two

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fishermen and two children are near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge

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tunnel in Virginia. They spot something floating in the water,

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a dark green suitcase Kenneth cole Brand expensive out of place.

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They call nine to one one. Virginia Beach Police respond.

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Open the suitcase. Human legs inside, dismembered, decomposing. Someone had

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cut off another person's legs and thrown them in the ocean.

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May eleventh, six days later graduate student cleaning up litter

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finds a second suitcase on Fisherman Island Beach, larger than

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the first, contains a human head and torso. The head

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has one bullet wound, the torso has two gunshot wounds

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to the chest. May sixteenth, a third suitcase arms, this

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time all three suitcases, matching all three Kenneth Cole, all

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three containing pieces of the same person. Police release a

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facial reconstruction sketch. Someone recognizes the victim, thirty nine year

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old William Bill McGuire, computer programmer from Woodbridge, New Jersey,

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married father of two young sons, three hundred miles away

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from where his body was found. The investigation moves to

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New Jersey and immediately focuses on one person. Bill's wife, Melanie,

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thirty one year old fertility nurse, mother of the year,

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perfect family on social media, except she just bought a gun,

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had an affair with her doctor, and googled how to

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commit murdered days before her husband disappeared. I'm Red Carter Today,

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the Netflix show Everyone's Watching, and the true crime case

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that inspired it. How a fertility nurse became the suitcase killer,

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the evidence that convicted her, and why she's still claiming

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innocence twenty two years later from a New Jersey prison cell.

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This is celebrity trials. Let me paint you the picture

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of Bill and Melanie McGuire in April two thousand and four.

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Bill McGuire thirty nine years old, Navy veteran software engineer

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at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Steady job, good provider,

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father to two boys, ages four and two, ready to

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give his family the American dream. Melanie McGuire, thirty one,

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graduated second in her class from nursing school, worked at

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a fertility clinic, helped couples have babies. Devoted mother, the

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kind of woman who put family first, or so everyone thought.

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April twenty eighth, two thousand and four, the mcguires closed

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on their first house in Warren County, New Jersey. Five

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years of marriage, two beautiful children, finally buying their dream home.

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Bill was excited, had been talking about it for months.

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Wanted a house where his boys could have their own rooms,

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a yard to play in the suburban life. That same night,

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according to prosecutors, Melanie drugged her husband, shot him multiple times,

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and dismembered his body with a saw. The house closing

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was Wednesday. By Friday, Bill McGuire was missing. By the

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following Tuesday, his legs were floating in the Chesapeake Bay.

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So what happened? How did a fertility nurse become capable

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of one of the most horrific murders in New Jersey history?

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The answer starts with doctor Bradley Miller. Miller was a

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fertility specialist at RMA Associates, the clinic where Melanie worked, married, father,

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partner in the practice, Handsome, successful, wealthy everything Bill McGuire wasn't.

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Melanie and Miller began an affair in two thousand and two.

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Not a one night stand, not a moment of weakness,

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a full blown relationship that lasted two years. Hotel meetings,

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romantic dinners, text messages, phone calls. Melanie was planning a

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new life with Miller, but there was a problem Bill McGuire.

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According to prosecutors, Melanie wanted out of her marriage, wanted

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to start over with Miller, but divorce would mean custody, battles,

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child support, dividing assets, messy complications. Murder was cleaner. The

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affair wasn't secret. Miller's colleagues knew, so did some of

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Melanie's friends. She'd confine it in people, that her marriage

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was troubled, that Bill was moody and unpredictable, that he

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had a gambling problem, that he was sometimes violent. But

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here's what prosecutors found when they investigated those claims. No

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police reports of domestic violence, no medical records of injuries,

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no witnesses to abuse, no evidence of a gambling addiction

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that would threaten the family finances. What they did find

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was a woman who wanted her husband gone. April twenty sixth,

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two thousand and four, two days before Bill disappeared, Melanie

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drove to Easton, Pennsylvania, walked into a gun store, purchased

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a point three eight caliber Trus revolver for two hundred

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and forty seven dollars. Also bought an item priced at

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nine dollars and ninety five cents. The store only had

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two items at that price. One was a box of

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point three eight caliber wadcutter bullets. Y Pennsylvania. Because New

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Jersey has strict gun laws waiting periods background checks, Pennsylvania

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was easier. Drive across the state line, buy the gun,

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drive home, no questions asked. Melanie told investigator she bought

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the gun for protection, said Bill had been threatening her,

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that she was afraid he might hurt her or the children.

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But she never called police, never filed a restraining order,

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never told family members she felt unsafe. What she did

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do was research. Prosecutors found Melanie's computer search history from

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the weeks before Bill disappeared. The searches were damning. How

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to purchase guns, illegally undetectable poisons, how to commit murder,

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chloral hydrate a powerful sedative, how to break someone's neck,

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smart enough to plan murder, too stupid to clear her

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browser history. April twenty ninth, two thousand four, early morning hours,

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Melanie called nine one one, hysterical. Said Bill had attacked her,

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choked her with a dryer sheet, hit her, then stormed

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out of the apartment. She didn't know where he went,

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just that he was angry and violent. Later that day,

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she went to family court filed for a restraining order

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against Bill, said she was afraid he would hurt her

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or their children. The court granted a temporary order. Perfect alibi,

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perfect timing, perfect story for a woman who just killed

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her husband, But investigators weren't buying it. Bill McGuire was

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a Navy veteran computer programmer, steady job, no history of violence,

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no criminal record. Friends and co workers described him as quiet, responsible,

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a good father, not the type to attack his wife

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and abandon his children. And then there was the timeline problem.

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Melanie claimed Bill left the apartment around one a m.

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On April twenty ninth, but his car was found abandoned

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in Atlantic City on May eighth. Security video showed the

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car being moved on April thirtieth, the day after he

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supposedly left. If Bill had driven to Atlantic City himself,

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why would his car sit there for nine days? If

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he'd left voluntarily, why hadn't he contacted his children, his employer,

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his family. The answer was simple. Bill McGuire never left

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that apartment alive. Prosecutors believe this is what really happened.

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April twenty eighth, night, Bill and Melanie returned home from

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the house closing. Bill was excited about the move, probably

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talking about their future plans the new house, their son's

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new rooms. Melanie gave him a drink beer or mixed

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drink laced with chloral hydrate, the same sedative found in

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Bill's abandoned car, the same drug she'd researched online. As

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Bill became drowsy and disoriented, Melanie shot him three bullets,

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one to the head, two to the chest, used a

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pillow or couch cushion to muffle the sound. That's why

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investigators found green polyester fibers on the bullets, fibers matching

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the McGuire's green couch. Then came the grizzly work dismembering

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the body. Prosecutors believe Melanie used a saw to cut

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Bill apart. The human sawdust found in her car. Microscopic

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pieces of bone and tissue proved she transported body parts.

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She wrapped the pieces in garbage bags from their apartment.

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Forensics proved the bags used for Bill's remains came from

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the same manufacturing batch as the bags in their home,

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same assembly line, made within hours of each other. Then

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she packed everything into their matching Kenneth Cole suitcases, three

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piece set, dark green, expensive luggage they'd bought for family vacations.

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But Melanie made a critical error. She used medical towels

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from her fertility clinic to wrap some of the body parts.

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Those towels were traced directly back to RMA Associates. Only

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clinic staff had access Your tax dollars at work. A

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fertility nurse who helped create life turned into a killer

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who destroyed it. May two thousand and four, Virginia Beach

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Police identified the dismembered victim as Bill McGuire from New Jersey.

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They turned the case over to the New Jersey State Police.

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What followed was one of the most methodical murder investigations

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in state history. Detectives started with the basics, who would

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want Bill McGuire dead. The answer led them straight to Melanie.

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First read flag the affair, doctor Bradley Miller initially tried

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to hide it. When confronted, he admitted the relationship, but

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insisted he had nothing to do with Bill's murder. Police

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tested him, offered him a deal where a wire record

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conversations with Melanie prove he wasn't involved. Miller agreed. For

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weeks he recorded phone calls with Melanie. The conversations were revealing.

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Melanie seemed more concerned about her legal situation than her

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missing husband. She coached Miller on what to tell. Police

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discussed alibis, worried about evidence, not the behavior of a

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grieving wife, the behavior of someone trying to cover up

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a crime. Second red flag, the restraining order timeline. Melanie

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filed for protection from Bill on April twenty ninth, one

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day after he disappeared. But she'd already researched chloral hydrate online,

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already bought the gun in Pennsylvania, already googled how to

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commit murder. She wasn't protecting herself from an abusive husband.

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She was building an alibi for murder. Third red flag

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her movements. After Bill disappeared April thirtieth, Bill's car was

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moved to Atlantic City. Security cameras caught it happening. Who

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moved it? Melanie claimed she was home with her children

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all night, but her easy Pass records told a different story.

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May third, five days after Bill vanished, Melanie's easy Pass

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pinged her car traveling through Delaware, heading south toward Virginia.

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She told doctor Miller she was furniture shopping. Prosecutors believe

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this is when she dumped the suitcases. The route from

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New Jersey to Chesapeake Bay goes through Delaware. Melanie's car

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was tracked on that exact route on May third. The

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first suitcase was found on May fifth, two days later.

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Timing isn't coincidence when someone's life is on the line

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four thread flag. The forensic evidence the gun purchase in

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Pennsylvania was devastating. Bill was killed with a point three

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to eight caliber handgun using Wadcutter bullets. Melanie bought a

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point three to eight caliber handgun and wadcutter bullets two

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days before the murder. Ballistics experts confirmed the bullets that

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killed Bill were fired from a gun with the same

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rifling characteristics as the weapon Melanie purchased. The prosecution's experts

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were confident it was the murder weapon, but Melanie's defense

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team claimed the ballistics were flawed, said the gun manufacturer's

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website listed different rifling specifications five lands and grooves versus

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six argued it couldn't be the murder weapon. The prosecution

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called it a red herring, said the defense was relying

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on Internet information instead of actual ballistics testing. The gun

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was the murder weapon. Period fifth red flag. The physical evidence.

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Investigators searched the McGuire apartment multiple times, tore up floorboards,

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pulled out plumbing, used luminol to detect blood, found nothing.

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Defense argued this proved innocence. How do you dismember a

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body and leave no trace? Prosecution had an answer. Melanie

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didn't kill Bill in the apartment. She transported the body elsewhere,

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did the dismemberment somewhere else then brought the pieces back

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to pack in suitcases. The human sawdust in her car

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proved she transported remains. The medical towels from her clinic

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proved she had access to materials for wrapping body parts.

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Just because as they couldn't find the kill site didn't

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mean she didn't commit murder. Sixth thread flag the disposal method.

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Three matching suitcases Kenneth colebrand expensive luggage, the same suitcases

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Melanie and Bill owned for family trips. Melanie admitted they

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owned that exact luggage set. Claimed Bill must have taken

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the suitcases when he left, But if Bill had fled voluntarily,

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why would he take three suitcases and not pack any clothes.

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His clothes were found separately in garbage bags given to friends.

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The suitcases were murder weapons used to transport and dispose

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of evidence, not travel luggage for a man fleeing his family.

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Seventh read flag the chloral hydrate. Investigators found a small

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bottle of chloral hydrate in Bill's abandoned car, powerful sedative

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used in medical procedures, not available over the counter. Prescription

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records showed chloral hydrate was prescribed to a fertility clinic

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patient on April twenty eighth, the day Bill disappeared. The

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prescription was written on doctor Miller's prescription pad. Melanie had

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access to those pads. The name on the prescription matched

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a real patient, but that patient never picked up the medication.

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Someone used her name to get sedatives. Someone with access

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to clinic prescription pads and patient information, someone like Melanie McGuire.

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The investigation took over a year, hundreds of interviews, thousands

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of pieces of evidence, computer forensics, ballistics testing, forensic pathology,

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financial records, phone records, travel records. Everything pointed to the

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same conclusion. Melanie McGuire murdered her husband. June two thousand

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and five, nearly thirteen months after Bill's death, Melanie was

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arrested and charged with first degree murder. She pleaded not guilty,

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claimed she was being framed, said the real killer was

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still out there, that Bill had gambling debts, that Atlantic

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City mobsters must have killed him over unpaid money. But

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investigators found no evidence of gambling debts, no threats from creditors,

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no connection to organized crime. What they found was a

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woman who wanted her husband dead, who bought a gun,

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who researched murder methods, who had an affair, who lied

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to police, whose movements matched the timeline of body disposal.

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The trial was set for two thousand and seven Melanie

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McGuire versus the State of New Jersey, Life in prison

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versus Freedom. The prosecution was confident the evidence was overwhelming,

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circumstantial but compelling, a mountain of proof that Melanie had

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planned and executed her husband's murder. The defense had one strategy,

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reasonable doubt, argue that circumstantial evidence wasn't enough that the

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prosecution couldn't prove beyond reasonable doubt that Melanie pulled the trigger.

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In criminal law, reasonable doubt can set you free, but

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in this case, the evidence was about to bury Melanie McGuire.

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We'll be right back with the trial that shocked New Jersey,

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the verdict that sent a mother of two to prison

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for life, and why Melanie McGuire is still claiming innocence

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twenty two years later. From behind bars, March fifth, two

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thousand and seven, Middlesex County Courthouse in New Brunswick, New Jersey,

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State versus Melanie McGuire begins the trial that would determine

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whether a fertility nurse would spend the rest of her

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life in prison. Media circus, national coverage, court, TV broadcasting live.

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The suitcase Killer was appointment television, gruesome, murder, dismembered body, adultery, betrayal, sex, violence, death,

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everything America loves in a true crime story. Lead prosecutor

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Assistant Attorney General Patricia Pretzioso experienced aggressive, built her case

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on circumstantial evidence and forensic science. Her theory, Melanie McGuire

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planned and executed a methodical murder to escape her marriage

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and start a new life with her lover. Defense attorney

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Joe Takapina, high profile criminal lawyer. His strategy attack the evidence,

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create reasonable doubt, argue that the prosecution's case was built

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on speculation, not proof. The trial lasted seven weeks. Both

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sides presented dozens of witnesses, hundreds of pieces of evidence,

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expert testimony on ballistics, forensics, and pathology. Prosecution's opening statement,

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this is a case about a woman who wanted her

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husband dead, who planned his murder, who executed that plan

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with cold, calculating precision. The evidence will show you that

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Melanie McGuire, shot William McGuire, dismembered his body, and disposed

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of his remains in three suitcases. She thought she could

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get away with the perfect murder. She was wrong. Defense

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opening statement, Melanie maguire is innocent. The prosecution wants you

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to convict her based on suspicion and speculation. There is

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no direct evidence she committed this crime. No eye witness,

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no confession, no DNA evidence linking her to the murder.

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You cannot convict someone of murder based on circumstantial evidence

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when reasonable doubt exists. The prosecution methodically built their case.

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Day one crime scene evidence, photos of the dismembered remains,

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autopsy results, cause of death, multiple gunshot wounds. Day two

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the gun purchase receipt from the Pennsylvania gun store, ballistics

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testimony linking the murder weapon to Melanie's purchase. Day three,

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computer forensics, internet search history, how to commit murder, undetectable poisons,

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chloral hydrate, evidence of premeditation. Day four the affair, doctor

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Bradley Miller's testimony, recorded phone calls with Melanie evidence of motive.

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Day five forensic evidence, medical towels from the fertility clinic, garbage,

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bags matching those in the McGuire apartment, human remains in

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Melanie's car. Week by week, witness by witness, the prosecution

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painted a picture of a calculating killer who planned every detail.

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The defense fought back, attacked the ballistics evidence, brought in

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their own expert who testified the gun Melanie bought couldn't

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have fired the bullets that killed Bill. Different rifling characteristics,

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different lands and grooves challenged the computer searches, argued anyone

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could have used the family computer, that the searches could

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have been innocent research question. The timeline argued Melanie couldn't

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have transported and dismembered the body in the time frame.

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Prosecutors suggested suggested alternative theories. Maybe Bill was killed by

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gambling associates, maybe someone else had act access to the

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suitcases in medical towels. But the defense had problems. No

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evidence of gambling, debts or threats against Bill, no alternative

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suspect with motive, means and opportunity, no explanation for the

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gun purchase, computer searches, and suspicious behavior. The prosecution's rebuttal

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was devastating. The defendant wants you to believe this is

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all a giant coincidence. That she happened to buy a

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gun two days before her husband was murdered with the

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same type of weapon. That someone else happened to use

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her computer to research murder methods. That she happened to

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be traveling toward Virginia when the suitcases were dumped. That

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her medical towels happened to be used to wrap the

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body parts. Ladies and gentlemen, there are no coincidences in murder,

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only evidence, and all the evidence points to one person.

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Melanie Maguire. April twenty third, two thousand and seven, the

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jury received the case twelve people to decide Melanie's fate.

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They deliberated for eleven hours over two days. The verdict

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guilty on all counts first degree murder, desecration of human remains,

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illegal possession of a weapon, perjury for lying to investigators.

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Melanie showed no emotion as the verdict was read, sat

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silently as her life was destroyed. Her two young sons

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would grow up without their mother and without their father.

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July nineteenth, two thousand and seven, sentencing day, Judge Frederick

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da Vasa had no mercy. Missus maguire, you have been

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convicted by a jury of your peers of the premeditated

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murder of your husband. This was not a crime of passion,

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This was not self defense. This was a calculated, cold

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blooded execution. You planned this murder for weeks. You researched methods,

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you bought a weapon. You executed your plan with ruthless efficiency.

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You then desecrated your husband's remains in a manner that

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shocks the conscience. Life in prison plus thirty years for

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the other charges. Melanie wouldn't be eligible for parole until

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she was one hundred one years old, effectively life without

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the possibility of release. The courtroom erupted. Bill McGuire's family

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finally had justice. Melanie's family was devastated. Her two sons

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would visit their mother in prison for the rest of

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their childhood. But Melanie McGuire wasn't done fighting. Immediately after sentencing,

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her lawyer's filed appeals claimed ineffective assistance of counsel, argued

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the evidence was insufficient, challenged the ballistics testimony. Every appeal

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was denied. New Jersey Superior Court, New Jersey Supreme Court,

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Federal courts all upheld the conviction. The evidence was overwhelming.

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The jury verdict was sound. Melanie McGuire was guilty of murder,

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but she never stopped claiming innocence from her cell at

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the Edna Mahon Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton in

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New Jersey. She continued to maintain someone else killed Bill,

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that she was framed, that the real killer was still free.

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For twenty two years, she's told anyone who would listen,

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I didn't do it. The question is does anyone believe her?

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January twenty twenty six, Edna Mahon Correctional Facility for Women, Clinton,

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New Jersey. Melanie maguire, now fifty three years old, is

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serving the nineteenth year of her life sentence. She's not

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a typical prisoner, college educated, former medical professional, mother of two,

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doesn't fit the stereotype of a convicted killer, and she

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spent every day of those nineteen years claiming she's innocent.

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In twenty nineteen, she participated in a podcast called Direct Appeal,

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hosted by criminology professors Megan Sachs and Amy Schlausberg from

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Fairleigh Dickinson University. The professor spent months investigating her case,

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interviewed her for over fifty hours, examined evidence, consulted independent experts.

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Their conclusion Melanie might be innocent. According to the podcast hosts,

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there are serious problems with the prosecution's case. The ballistics evidence.

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Melanie's gun had five lands and grooves according to the

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manufacturer's specifications. The bullets that killed Bill had six lands

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and grooves. Different rifling patterns mean different guns. The prosecution's

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ballistics expert may have made a critical error the crime scene.

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Despite multiple searches, investigators found no evidence that Bill was

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killed or dismembered in the McGuire apartment. No blood, no DNA,

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no tissue. How do you dismember a human body and

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leave no trace? The timeline Melanie was home with her

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two two young children the night Bill disappeared. When did

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she have time to kill him, dismember the body, and

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dispose of the remains. The prosecution never provided a clear timeline.

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The physical evidence the human sawdust found in Melanie's car

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was minimal, microscopic particles that could have been transferred innocently,

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not proof of transporting dismembered remains. The alternative suspect Bill

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McGuire did have financial problems, credit card debt, some evidence

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of gambling. Someone else could have had motive to kill him.

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The podcast created reasonable doubt, enough doubt that some listeners

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questioned whether Melanie was rightfully convicted, but prosecutor Patricia Pretzioso

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stands by the conviction. In interviews, she's adamant the right

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person is in prison. The evidence in this case was overwhelming.

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The jury heard all the evidence, they saw all the

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expert testimony. They deliberated carefully and reached the correct verdict.

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Melanie McGuire planned and executed her husband's murder. The podcast

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doesn't change the facts, and the facts remain compelling. Melanie

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bought a gun two days before the murder. She researched

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murder methods online. She had an affair and motive to kill.

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Her movements matched the timeline of body disposal. Her medical

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towels were used to wrap body parts. She lied to

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investigators repeatedly. Even if some individual pieces of evidence have problems,

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the totality still points to guilt. But Melanie continues fighting

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from prison. She's participated in documentaries, given interviews, maintained her innocence.

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Her family supports her. They believe the conviction was wrong.

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This week, the Netflix release of Suitcase Killer the Melanie

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maguire story has renewed interest in her case. Social media

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users are debating her guilt or innocence. Some think she

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was framed, Others think she got what she deserved. The

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Netflix movie, starring Candace King as Melanie portrays her as

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a woman trapped in an abusive marriage who was wrongfully

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convicted of murder. It emphasizes the prosecution's reliance on circumstantial evidence,

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questions whether justice was served. Critics argue the movie Whitewash

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