tv Dateline MSNBC December 26, 2022 12:00am-1:01am PST
12:00 am
and his sister and his mom and those who believed in him. to his ancestral farm. and his other longtime love, the old shovel >> i knew brad was innocent, the only thing i've ever wante was for finally everyone t hear the truth >> that is all for this editio of dateline, i'm craig melville, thank you for watching >> i'm craig melvin. >> and i'm natalie morales >> and this is dateline. >> he could have complet respiratory failure in a numbe of minutes
12:01 am
dizziness, confusion, weakness those are your clues you are looking for anything that could possibly contribute to a person's death. one dose, high enough dose could do all of that >> she found a love at las with husband number three. the charming jeopardy chain. >> younger guy, gourmet cook nuclear physicists i was impressed. >> then suddenly, she was gone a mystery illness that baffled even her doctors >> she shook like someone with the start of parkinson's >> what had killed her something at home? something at work? >> household items that's a possibility >> listen carefully.
12:02 am
in this case, the most important clue of all just might come from the victim herself. >> this just seems like ther is some suspicion things tha have occurred. >> could this be murder? >> do you think that someone might be trying to poison you? >> that's an unpleasant way to die. >> yes >> and could she help solve it >> your disk are griping kin of a murder and should slo motion >> yes, rather diabolical. it's a mind-boggling >> hello, and welcome to dateline linda curry was thriving with dream job and a dreamy new husband. then she got sick and doctor were stumped but was started as a medical mystery soon took a sinister turn a lab test result veal that on piece of the puzzle, but i would take investigators years to put all the pieces together here's josh mankiewicz wit toxic relations.
12:03 am
>> what was wrong with linda curry? >> something is happening with you lynda, you're ingestin something in your body tha shouldn't be there >> she went to the doctor. a lot of doctors >> and it wouldn't go away and it will get worse. nausea, vomiting >> dizziness, confusion. >> medicine didn't seem to hel her. >> you could have respirator failure within a number of minutes. >> those who knew lynda watche something unfold but what exactly did they see? it would take 20 years t unravel this mystery linda curry, born linda kilgore, with six years younger than he sister path. linda grew up to be a southern california beauty. she loved the sunshine, horses and family pat's daughter ricky looked up to her aunt linda. >> she would call me over to her house to go read her
12:04 am
closets and i would leave with my backseat loaded from th floor to the roof with clothes >> she sounds like a lot o fun. >> she was a lot of fun. she was a blast. >> linda worked from the power company, southern california edison, that's where she met mary segel >> where we really met was o the fourth floor where we woul go for lunch she ate like a horse and never gained an inch >> she - >> and it drew me to her and we became the best bud ever >> but looks, generosity and brains don't guarantee happiness in love. linda was married twice an divorced twice >> she did choose guys tha didn't seem to be a nice fit for the long term. >> so she got her heart broken a couple of times? >> she got her heartbroken i think more than a couple o times. >> but if her personal lif wasn't going well, her professional life was. she climbed the ranks at edison, becoming the trading
12:05 am
coordinator at the nuclear power plant. and it was there that linda man named paul curry he was 13 years younger than linda, and worked as a nuclear physicist. pauls boss mike flower >> paul had an impressiv resume >> yes he did. and a good reputation. he had a senior reacto operator license, and that's not such an easy qualification to find. >> and just a few months befor linda and paul started dating, he'd won $24,000 on jeopardy >> so is this younger guy -- >> younger guy >> gourmet cook. >> gourmet cook, a pianists. >> he's in mensa >> mensa member? >> nuclear physicists. >> nuclear physicists, all the right things >> paul moved into linda's hom in the picture perfect city of san clemente they send their marriage vow in 1992. that part about in sickness an
12:06 am
in health would be tested less than a year later. in the spring of 1993, linda came down with an illness that put her in the local hospital. mary came to see her >> she looked like a littl girl in a big bed. she just looks so weak and not vibrant, like lind >> frightening to see her like that >> yes, you bet you. >> her newly minted husban paul was sick to, with many of the same strange symptoms. both were weak, vomiting, like a bad food poisoning or the worst stomach flu imaginable paul recovered quickly linda did not. >> we knew that she was very sick and that they couldn't identif what was causing the problem >> paul kept a vigil by he bedside and kept their ediso colleagues updated with dail emails like this - >> there still is not much clu as to the original infection but if she continues to improv
12:07 am
and gets well soon, i don' think it will really matte what the name of the problem was. i think we can all live with a mystery. as long as linda is around t be mystified with us how was paul when linda wa sick >> very concerned. >> worried >> yes >> eventually linda recovere enough to go home. paul fixed her gourmet meals drew her a hot bath ever night. and soon linda bet went back t work at the nuclear plant. but months later, she was in the hospital again seem strange symptoms. linda again recovered enough t go home and back to work but she worried about relapse. she and paul planned to meet with some specialist who might be able to help. on june ninth, 1994, pau emailed mary >> it was, mary i'm worrie about linda. she is wobbly and weak
12:08 am
>> paul wrote that she was mumbling incomprehensible stuf in her sleep about work an projects and meetings. >> and she's working all these hours. and she's working too many - and maybe mary, she'll liste to you >> when linda came home from work that day she was tired an went to bed without eating dinner a few hours later, the phone rang at mike flowers house >> i answer it and he said mr. flowers, this is the chaplain. and he said, can you come to paul and lynda curry's house >> mike rushed over and foun his friend paul, who told an awful story. how he woke up to an odd sound and found linda not breathing. he called 9-1-1. but by the time paramedics got there it was too late. >> paul was extremely upset. for hours, i was basically holding him up and he wa crying on my shoulder.
12:09 am
>> grief, shock and at the bottom of it all a question. what killed linda curry? >> coming up linda's loved ones would wai years for an answer. an answer that would come. >> what's your full name >> linda lee curry >> from linda curry herself. when dateline continues. could it be right for you? if you have a high risk factor, like being over 65, heart disease, diabetes, asthma,... or smoking... ...and you test positive, don't wait-ask your provider about oral treatment right away. did you know some of your detergent's fragrance disappears in the dryer? downy in-wash scent boosters survive the washer & dryer for freshness that lasts 6 times longer than detergent alone. release freshness with every touch... with downy in-wash scent boosters. i'll remember that chapter of my life forever. we laughed, we cried, we protected that progressive home & auto bundle
12:10 am
day and night. we were all of us dazzling... like knights sworn to protect our kingdom. we knew it wouldn't last forever, but... that's what made it special -- you know we'll be back tomorrow, right? yeah, but it'll never be today again. -[ groaning ] -just get on the bus, flo! >> everyone who knew paul an
12:13 am
lynda curry knew that linda ha been sick for months and a list for doctors could never explain. and paul had been sick to. now suddenly, lindo was dead paul's friends steve wiggly. >> everybody was in such shock i don't think the reason mattered it was just okay, we have to take care of our friend. >> how was paul? >> grief stricken. >> so was linda's family her niece ricky remember how paul changed the funeral arrangements to help them deal with linda's sudden death. >> he allowed the casket to be open so that my mom could se her sister wrap her mind around her siste being gone >> linda was now only a memory but she had left behind perplexing medical mystery what caused the mysterious illness that took her life >> what were her symptoms? >> diarrhea, vomiting,
12:14 am
dizziness, fatigue >> and it wouldn't go away >> it wouldn't go away >> after linda's death, they discovered a medical chronolog on her computer at work. she kept careful notes about her symptoms, from the ver beginning. it went back a year to jun 28th, 1993 she wrote, felt fine all day worked late. had a solid for dinner - woke up in the middle of the night vomiting a month later, july 24th, 1993 approximately one hour after eating i began vomiting. i became extremely weak an sweaty linda's best friend. >> she worked at the nuclear plant? >> she did >> could it have been somethin she picked up there? >> it's not something that happens. >> and she never did that? >> no, not at all. >> they considered a third darker possibilities you know there are people wh make themselves sick because they want to be the center o attention? >> sure, but she wasn't of tha
12:15 am
personality. >> possible that she was depressed? >> she loved her job, she ha friends. >> she had the perfect husband >> perfect husband, lots o nice high heels. what could you be depresse about? >> linda's autopsy was inconclusive her death certificate listed the cause as, pendin investigation. and, sheriffs detectives did investigate. >> the interviews taking place at mr. curry's residents >> six months after linda' death, the interviewed paul. >> did you ever questioned them, why they never - >> sure, we were makin ourselves hysterical trying to figure out what was going on >> like everyone else in londo 's life, paul said he wa puzzled and frustrated >> i've been a problem solve all my life and for the last couple of years, that was problem that i couldn't solve. and it's extremely taxing.
12:16 am
>> and, like everyone else, he wondered if postmortem tests would finally solve th mystery. >> you understand that they're doing, toxicological - >> to try to determine - >> yet they haven't sent me an information. >> she has a forensi toxicologist at the boston university school of medicine. she didn't work on linda's case, but in her lab, she often deal with the same challenges, when finding out how someone died linda suffered from dizziness, weakness, vomiting after eating, what does that sound like? >> it definitely sounds like the nausea and vomiting is persistent, that's suggestin that the body is ingeste something that the body can' handle >> that's what linda's frien had thought all along. she said she shared he concerns with lynda. >> let's have someone go int
12:17 am
the house and check it, let' see if there's anything foreig in their >> but she said linda neve took that advice, never had he home tested. now they all waited for th toxicology test on linda's body and sure enough, the lab tha examined linda sample di detect and identifies somethin quite curious. linda curries body contained lethal levels of nicotine. it only deepened the mystery because according to everyon who knew her, linda curry di not smoke cigarettes o anything else, never had >> never never. >> did that make sense to you, nicotine poisoning >> i've never heard of it, she never smoked, how could this happen how could this be? no, i was shocked. i was shocked. >> is it unusual to find nicotine in someone's body >> it's not unusual. we are exposed to nicotine either as a smoker or as a nonsmoker. >> there are more sources of nicotine and you think, beside cigarettes they're actuall small levels of nicotine i eggplant and potatoes. it also used to be a ingredient in insecticides >> if you're working in your garden and your using an old insecticide that that contai nicotine could possibly ge absorbed to your skin. >> enough to kill you? >> yes >> in sufficient quantity sh said nicotine is a deadl
12:18 am
poison >> in the beginning th individual may experience some nausea, vomiting, that's going to be followed with tremors, leading to convulsions and the complete respiratory depressio leading to the death of th individual >> you stop breathing? >> you stop rethink. >> that is an unpleasant way t dine >> yes >> linda didn't garden either.
12:19 am
and the coroner didn't believe that amount of nicotine go into her body by accident. so he classified her death as homicide you kept waiting for tha investigation to go somewhere? >> yes >> it never did? >> never did >> detectives could no determine where the nicotine came from or how it got into linda's system months passed, the new years linda's niece nikki spoke ofte with the lead detective, and one day hurt something tha shocked her. >> he seemed to be inclined to think that she had committed suicide. >> that might have been the en of the story were it not for this man at the time i determined student, he never
12:20 am
met linda curry, but one day h did know everything about her. coming up. we went back through every interview with every witness >> a new team makes a ne discovery. when dateline continues. powerful relief so you can restore and recover. theraflu hot beats cold. (music throughout) get the royal treatment. join the millions playing royal match today. download now. oral treatment for covid-19: could it be right for you? if you have a high risk factor, like being over 65, heart disease, diabetes, asthma,... or smoking... ...and you test positive, don't wait-ask your provider about oral treatment right away. >> in 2006, when the name lind
12:23 am
12:24 am
>> nevertheless, a sheriff's investigator decided to take another crack at solving the mystery. more than a decade after linda 's death >> we went back through ever interview that was conducted with every witness >> they also went deep int linda's medical records, and found out something very strange had happened during he first hospital stay. >> the nurse came back to th room and found the iv bag had discolored fluid in it and changed it out >> after the discovery, lind became seriously ill ending up in the icu eventually, she got better and went home. but then for months later sh was sick again back in the hospital and again, something odd occurred >> at that hospital, the i port was broken. >> this is a different hospital?
12:25 am
>> different hospital, different staff. >> had someone tampered with those bags could it have been poison? that was never clear >> they tested everything. they couldn't tell >> normal toxicology tests normal hospital testing, won pick up nicotine unless you're testing for? >> unless you're testing for it, correct. >> the incidents were as
12:26 am
troubling as they were mysterious no surveillance video or security tape showing anybod doing it >> no, the only common denominator is linda and paul. >> so, linda was getting the treatment and paul was right there by her side as a beautiful husband? >> paul, the dutiful, doting husband. as they reviewed all their interviews and conducted nuance, they picked up on a theme. linda's friends and family didn't much like him her niece, rickie. >> there was this was this arrogance about him. >> remember, paul was physicist. a member of mensa. a jeopardy winner. and apparently he didn't kee any of that a secret >> he was on some other social level than we were so, i felt he looked down hi nose at us >> he thought he was bette than you are >> yes, definitely that. >> but linda of course loved paul's intelligence, and the way he spoiled her but when linda got sick, her friend mary got suspicious >> she was telling me, or paul is now making me the salads an he's making this new dressing. and you know what he's doing mary he's such a good guy, he's drawing a hot bat for me right after i eat. and he's making me so -- and she's getting sick >> and you think that this salads and the homemad dressing and hot bath all ha something to do with it? >> i think he's a nuclea physicists, right? yes he's mensa, he's a smart guy. i think he was trying differen things >> things like nicotine? was that even possible well, not impossible according to toxicologist -- jones. so you could serve somebody spicy or savory enough thi
12:27 am
that they would not know there is a significant enough amount nicotine if you introduce it to someone 's bathwater and put in some perfume or send itself of some kind - >> it may be able to mask an order it may produce so there is a lot of ways that you can get nicotine in your system without noticing it >> possible. >> it's worth remembering that paul got sick at the same time linda did. so whatever affected her, seem to affect him too. but as friends and famil watched poll get well, and linda get sicker, thei suspicions hardened. >> you always immediatel suspected paul having done something? >> yes, from the first phone call >> i thought he definitely was trying to kill
12:28 am
>> other people thought th same thing >> absolutely. >> nobody called the police? >> there was no proof. >> still, mary says, she tried to warn linda. i told her she had to leave. >> and she said what you're seeing things >> she, mary, she's a good he' good husband he wouldn't hurt me. >> those worries from friend and family, and myster illness. and questions about the iv a lot of suspicions. but no evidence. and certainly no witnesses except one >> what's your full name >> linda lee curry curry >> linda curry herself and what she had to say wa breathtaking >> coming up >> how have you've been feeling? since she left the hospital? >> linda's powerful words from the past >> if somebody were trying t do something to you -- if they were trying to poiso you -- any idea who would try to do that >> when dateline continues
12:29 am
found that it was a tu mor, and they sent us straight to st. jude. when i received the diagnosis with my daughter, my hope was gone. but when you get there, everyone's like, hey, we've got your back. we're not going to give up. and when you see other people not giving up on your child, that makes all the difference in the world. when we first made it to st. jude, my baby couldn't sit up on her own at all. the tumor had pressed up against her spine to the point where it basically paralyzed her. she couldn't feel her feet or anything like that. she went literally five, six months without walking. and just to see her start to make those steps after treatment. take your time, one step at a time. child: take my time. take my time! angel: good job! (singing) i'll rise up. i'll rise like the day, i rise up. i'll rise unafraid.
12:30 am
i'll rise up, and i'll know 1,000 times again. announcer: st. jude children's research hospital works day after day to find cures and save the lives of children with cancer and other life threatening diseases. for just $19 a month, you'll help us continue the life saving research and treatment these kids need. join with your debit or credit card right now, and we'll send you this st. jude t-shirt that you can proudly wear to show your support. angel: i thank them so much for even coming up with the regimen and everything like that, because it worked. they saved my baby's life. >> as prosecutor -
12:32 am
and this investigator looked into the decade old mystery of linda curry death they found something remarkable two interviews with lynd curry. it turns out after strange thing happened with her iv when she was in the hospital detectives had interviewed her and those conversations were recorded >> how have you've been feeling? >> oh you know i feel great. >> now investigator put he
12:33 am
headphones on and listen t linda curry's voice. >> i'm hard on a lot of things i'm hard on my man, i'm hard o my cars, i was not easy on m iv bag >> she seemed to be joking about the apparent damage to the ivy, but detectives weren' laughing they knew linda's friends an family suspected paul. >> i'm going on the assumption right now, that paul is doin this, we can't prove something -- >> linda did acknowledge the suspicions of others >> all my friends, a lot of my friends are saying that paul i guilty, get out of the house >> but, she did not suspect he husband. >> i don't really believe that paul tried to do anything. >> she described a lovin partner, who nursed her throug her illness. >> i've got to say that, overall, our relationships
12:34 am
wonderful. he's a wonderful man i love him >> and she seemed to mean it i that interview but in another one, she said something entirely different so different it makes you si up a little straighter >> if somebody were trying t do something to you -- if they were trying to poiso you -- any idea who would try to do that >> well, the only person i could think of that would have the motive to do it would be paul and -- and the only motive i can thin of his money >> for investigators shoal thi was a revelation, she says it' why she stuck with this case for so many years. >> it's very rare to find motive in a homicide, atul, an in this case i had a motive. >> handed to you by the victim >> yes when i listen to that interview,
12:35 am
i thought this is unsolvable case >> you thought she laid it out for us, we should finish it. >> from the grave, we have t find justice >> they began to follow th money, it turned out linda was worth a lot of it. she had a retirement account a edison and almost $700,000 i life insurance and, despite her reluctance to believe that paul was trying t poison her, she had change those insurance policies making her sister -- according to the prosecution paul only found that out after linda's death, and he wasn't happy. >> he had letters that he sent to the insurance company sayin that we paid for the premium from our marriage money, i a entitled to it >> he also find out that pau had filed an insurance claim for a ladies rolex wall watc and some jewelry that had gone missing after linda's funeral. he received a 9000 dolla payout but investigator knew that
12:36 am
linda had wanted the rolex t go to her sister >> and i called her and said there is a report that the watch was stolen, she says no have to watch on right now >> in fact, the watch had neve been stolen. paul curry, it seemed, had filed a phony insurance claim. >> who does that if somebody is an innocent spouse, grieving the death o his beloved wife, who decides, within days after that to fake the theft of her rolex and fil a claim to collect the money >> paul, apparently. but it turned out that h needed bother, linda's conflicted feelings about paul ran deep five months after taking him off her insurance policies, sh wrote her sister pat a letter, a will and left paul $400, 000 which eventually received afte her death. but by then, paul had othe
12:37 am
troubles within a year of linda's death paul's boss mike flower, discovered that his storm ploy was not a nuclear physicist. as he had claimed publicly and on his resume for so long. >> he didn't have a degree a all, paul ended up submittin his resignation. >> and if he had not, he would've been fired? >> yes >> to lie about something that could be so easily checked that says to me that the perso doing that has an unbelievably large ego. >> it was very disappointing >> so would, he thinks he ca get away with everything >> it was very disappointing >> all of it added up to a deeply unflattering portrait o paul curry, but did it add u to a case for murder this prosecutor knew that it did not. he and the detective face th
12:38 am
same problem that th detectives face in 1994, lot of suspicion, but no direc evidence that paul kille linda. and they felt that the current suspect, a self proclaimed genius knew that >> he was smart enough t realize that any police officer, the minute after she was murdered is going to expect th husband to be the suspect. he was one step ahead. >> his theory, paul tested different poisons, carefully picked an obscure one, the poisoned himself, to cover his tracks >> the first time linda go sick, he had the exact sam symptoms, because that allow him to say both -- we both got sick, maybe we bot got something. >> you think that's hi thinking ahead >> sure that's his mo. he went back to the night lind
12:39 am
died and the nicotine that killed her, he consulted a nicotine expert who had looked into the case back in 1994 >> i remember the case, nobody ever followed up with me i go would you kindly, please, be willing to write a report about your interpretation of the results? >> it turned out to be the breakthrough they needed the amount of nicotine in he blood was extraordinarily high nearly 100 times would you would find in a regular smoker forensic toxicologist. >> for the amount that was found in those specimens i could take a matter of minutes to reach death >> and remember, paul ha always maintained he was alone with lynda four hours before she died >> that report allowed us to say look, it is absolutely categorical no other human being that had the opportunity to do what he did. >> prosecutor and th investigator knew it was now time for some show intel wit paul curry coming up. paul curry had something t reveal >> i have -- i have been less than honest about that >> when dateline continues or, like being over 65,
12:40 am
heart disease, diabetes, asthma,... or smoking... ...and you test positive, don't wait-ask your provider about oral treatment right away. this isn't charmin! no wonder i don't feel as clean. here's the new charmin ultra strong. ahhh! my bottom's been saved! with its diamond weave texture, charmin ultra strong cleans better with fewer sheets and less effort. enjoy the go with charmin.
12:41 am
hey guys, detect this: living with hiv, i learned that i can stay undetectable with fewer medicines. that's why i switched to dovato. dovato is for some adults who are starting hiv-1 treatment or replacing their current hiv-1 regimen. detect this: no other complete hiv pill uses fewer medicines to help keep you undetectable than dovato. detect this: most hiv pills contain 3 or 4 medicines. dovato is as effective with just 2. research shows people who take hiv treatment as prescribed and get to and stay undetectable can no longer transmit hiv through sex.
12:42 am
don't take dovato if you're allergic to its ingredients, or if you take dofetilide. taking dovato with dofetilide can cause serious or life-threatening side effects. hepatitis b can become harder to treat while on dovato. don't stop dovato without talking to your doctor, as your hepatitis b may worsen or become life-threatening. serious or life-threatening side effects can occur, including allergic reactions, lactic acid buildup, and liver problems... if you have a rash or other allergic reaction symptoms, stop dovato and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems, or if you are, may be, or plan to be pregnant. dovato may harm your unborn baby. use effective birth control while on dovato. do not breastfeed while taking dovato. most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, trouble sleeping, tiredness, and anxiety. detect this: i stay undetectable with fewer medicines. ask your doctor about switching to dovato. play a song! i stay undetectable with fewer medicines. i couldn't possibly... once upon a time... a wishing star fell from the sky.
12:43 am
that star... had one wish to grow on. play double time. ha, ha! i have to fine the wishing star. sniff him out. -all i can smell, is cats. oooh. good night. [ cheering ] you're still here? ok, one more number. puss in boots. only in theater, rated pg. >> after linda curry's death paul curry lost his job at the nuclear power plant. in large part because it turne out he lied about being ne nuclear physicists he left california, move to la vegas and began his life over. he eventually remarried, adopted a son. and by 2010, he was living i the small town of salina kansas back then, jason gauge was the city manager >> when we met paul, one of th
12:44 am
things that we notice initiall was that he seemed to be very, very smart >> paul was hired as the lin is building official, dealin with permits and inspections he kept city commissioners updated about his projects >> he was soft unspoken really but very much to the point and it was easy to tell he did his homework, he knew what he wa doing. >> even, by this time sergeant with the orange count sheriff department, had done her homework to. and on november 9th, 2010, she was more than ready to speak with paul curry about the deat of his wife. more than 16 years earlier paul met her at the salina police department. he came in without an attorney and agreed to answer questions >> okay, i >> paul curry. >> a camera was recording as paul talked about his long ago marriage to linda. >> we were very observed wit one another. it was a wonderful - many years >> and he spoke of the night she died >> i will come in the middle o the night and she was no breathing. and i called 9-1-1
12:45 am
and performed cpr and they cam and there is nothing they coul do >> after 40 minutes or so, eve started with the har questions. >> you let pat have the rolex, right? >> first she confronted paul with the phony insurance key clean on linda's watch >> i have been less than hones about that and his - quite frankly, it was just a poor decision. >> right there in that room, he's basically keeping t insurance fraud? >> yes >> which is way less and serious and murder, but -- >> but it's still a crime. >> but when it came to linda's death, paul seemed like a ma with nothing to hide in fact, he was the one wh brought up the incidents wit the eye these. >> there was something tha went on in one of her hospital rooms and someone explain to m exactly what occurred. be shull wanted an explanation to, before she wanted reaction >> she played linda's 1993 interview with detectives fo poll
12:46 am
>> i was the only person i can think of who would have motive would be paul >> do you have any comments? >> very unusual to hear voice. >> unusual to hear her voice >> yes >> it's nostalgic. >> it was nostalgic to hear he voice? >> yes >> he's a cool customer. >> yes >> but now it was time to as the biggest question of all. >> did you kill linda? >> absolutely not. i love her dearly. >> did you have a reason t kill linda >> absolutely not. it's an open mystery i mean, it's an unsolved death but -- >> but right but part of its not unsolved we know what killed knit linda we know that it was th nicotine intoxication. >> right >> and now you show him th
12:47 am
report saying that she die within two hours of getting th nicotine >> right >> i don't know how to respond to that. >> a man who had always had al the answers suddenly had none. >> i'm kind of taken b surprise you are dredging up memories that are uncomfortable >> he still thinks he's goin to walk out of that interview. >> at that point, yes he does. >> paul had finall miscalculated. but shull knew that if pau didn't change his story abou being alone with linda the night she died, he was essentially admitting that h and no one else had th opportunity to kill her, based on that report two hours in, even left th room to call the prosecuto back in orange county to let him know how things were going listen to what paul says to th other detective as he wait for ivã¡n to come back >> should i presume that i'm not going to make my 4:0 meeting today? >> and he wasn't joking, he wa serious. because in his mind he's thinking, maybe they'r suspicious of me but they don't have enough t
12:48 am
charge me. that was his mistake >> because he never made tha meeting. >> oh, he never made tha meeting. >> 16 years after linda curr died - >> i'm placing you under arres for the murder of linda curry. >> yvonne shull handcuffed pau curry. the man linda had loved, married and trusted. linda's best friend merr seabold heard the news back in california >> and i'm sitting there and all a sudden i see paul currie mugshot and i'm going, oh my gosh, look, there's paul >> what this mandate is, for about eight, nine months, he was watching the impact of wha he was doing on her, every day while at the same time, holdin her hand and saying i love you honey, i'm here for you. honey >> you're describing a elaborate con. that ended up being a murder i slow motion. >> yes, elaborate, diabolical. >> paul curry entered a plea o not guilty prosecutor knew it would be tough case there was no physical evidence tying paul to linda's death.
12:49 am
12:50 am
>> i go upstairs to the extr bedroom and i'm going, oh my gosh >> when dateline continues [narrator] why is aaron happy? well, just days ago, his old wheels gave out. that's because carvana had tens of thousands of cars under $20,000. so aaron's folks could help him out with a sweet ride. [aaron] no way. [narrator] yes way. with the most cars under $20,000 and our car vending machines, we'll drive you happy at carvana. did you know if you turn to cold with tide
12:51 am
you can save up to $150 a year on your energy bill? how? the lower the temp, the lower your bill. tide cleans great in cold and saves money? i am so in. save $150 when you turn to cold with tide. i'm getting vaccinated with prevnar 20®. a pfizer vaccine! so am i. because i'm at risk for pneumococcal pneumonia. i'm asking about prevnar 20® because there's a chance pneumococcal pneumonia could put me in the hospital. if you're 19 or older, with certain chronic conditions like copd, asthma, diabetes, or heart disease or are 65 or older, you may be at increased risk for pneumococcal pneumonia. prevnar 20® is approved in adults to help prevent infections from 20 strains of the bacteria that cause pneumococcal pneumonia. in just one dose. don't get prevnar 20® if you've had a severe allergic reaction to the vaccine or its ingredients. adults with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects were pain and swelling at the injection site, muscle pain, fatigue, headache, and joint pain.
12:52 am
i want to be able to keep my plans. that's why i chose to get vaccinated with prevnar 20®. because just one dose can help protect me from pneumococcal pneumonia. ask your doctor or pharmacist about getting vaccinated with prevnar 20® today. if you think all pads are exactly the same... think again. this always ultra thin is our best yet. it wicks gushes 90% faster and absorbs even more. for up to 100% leak-free and odor-free comfort. this is triple protection from always. well, we fell in love through gaming.
12:53 am
but now the internet lags and it throws the whole thing off. when did you first discover this lag? i signed us up for t-mobile home internet. ugh! but, we found other interests. i guess we have. [both] finch! let's go! oh yeah! it's not the same. what could you do to solve the problem? we could get xfinity? that's actually super adult of you to suggest. i can't wait to squad up. i love it when you talk nerdy to me. guy, guys, guys, we're still in session. >> september 2014, 20 year and i don't know what the heck you're talking about.
12:54 am
after linda's death, and fou years after paul's arrest. it was finally time for him to face a jury. his defense attorney argue that the prosecution's case wa all a cauldron of suspicion, stirred by lynda's friends >> they tell the doctors their suspicions, they talk to b such other about the suspicion over the year. so everything tart start getting interpreted in suspicious ways. >> suspicion without evidence? there was no evidence that pau had ever bought nicotine or an other poison, nothing to tie him directly to linda's death. on the contrary, according t her, paul was a loving, caring husband. she called paul's friend stephen to testify >> she wasn't in a harmful
12:55 am
environment. >> it never occurred to yo that paul might have had any evil intention towards her >> no. i just didn't see it >> so how did lindell get an leak lethal dose of nicotine the defense had a bombshel theory, that linda herself was responsible. >> because she had been very very sick and it was ver desperate to find a cure >> she explained to the jury that nicotine was sometime used as a homeopathic cure t treat illnesses with symptom similar to linda's >> when we go to mexico, the would sometimes pick up herbs. >> steve said he couldn' remember with the herbs were but to the defense it mean that linda was willing to tr anything, maybe even nicotine.
12:56 am
>> and in light of the type of illness that she had, and he tendency to use herbal medicin and non-traditional medicine it is very reasonable to think that - and this is not a drastic step >> maybe it was only accidentally drastic, an inadvertent overdose tha caused an unintentiona suicide. so the defense argued. prosecutor ebrahim baytieh sai it was no accident, it was a premeditated plot by pau curry. >> he married her, planning on collecting the life insurance, he murdered her by poisoning her and he collected on th life insurance >> the jury heard from linda's best friend merry seabold. >> i go upstairs to the extr bedroom and they're laying out on the bureau are all of her documents, her 401(k), her lif insurance. >> so somebody is lookin through her insurance, her 401(k), all of the stuff tha
12:57 am
you would go through i somebody was dead. >> exactly >> that somebody was paul, sai the prosecutor and remember that email that paul sent mary the morning o linda's death, the one askin for mayors help. >> he says i'm worried about linda, i'm worried something bad is going to happen to her. >> this is how many hour before she died? >> 16 hours before >> you think paul is laying th groundwork there >> absolutely. >> he revealed to the jury how he believes paul introduce tha fatal dose of nicotine int linda system during the off top c, th medical examiner found a injection mark behind linda' ear. >> you think he stuck a needle in her >> it's not out of my mind that is exactly what he did. >> and you think he's gettin frustrated >> yes, that's it, it's time t catch the paycheck
12:58 am
>> and while there is no evidence paul ever bough nicotine, baytieh said, he didn't have to he could've distilled it fro cigarettes >> right >> he would've known how >> it is very easy >> the prosecutor had one more surprising revelation for th jury he called leslie curry t testify, she was paul's wife prior to his marriage to linda leslie told the jury that over the course of several months during her marriage to paul, she became very weak and sick, when paul told her to get life insurance she took the require blood test, but the insuranc company declined coverage. after that, leslie said, two things happened, paul left her and she got a better >> you think paul poisoned leslie >> i think he was poisoning her, yes. and i think if she would'v gotten the life insuranc policy, then he would've kille her. >> the prosecutor had one last
12:59 am
opportunity to convince th jury to convict paul curry, th men some member and former jeopardy contestant of murder. and in his closing argument, h channeled alex trebek. >> human criminality, book smart, greedy, arrogant, insatiable appetite for money, sneaky and manipulative. got away with murder for 1 years. who is paul marshall curry >> after three weeks and mor than 30 witnesses, the jury ha the case and the next day, the reached a verdict. >> with a jury in the abov
1:00 am
entitled action find the defendant, paul curry, guilt of the crime of felony >> guilty of first degre murder, sentenced to life in prison with no possibility o parole the jury had reached a verdict on how linda died. but there is still one lingering question she was smart, she was educated, she had a good job, sh could've walked out of the doo at any time if she thought her life was in danger >> that was his hook on linda. he gave her which he needed, which is somebody to say i lov you, i will be here for you, i will hold your hand. that's what he prayed on >> look, we all want somebod in our live loves us and cares about us and tells us how grea we are linda curry is not alone i that, but, how long are yo willing to stick around fo what turns out to be you eventual murder after yo already suspect your husband >> in linda's case, for th rest of her life >> that's all for this edition of dateline, i'm craig melvin, thank you for watching >> this sunday... >> are you ready to meet the press? >> ...we celebrate 75 years of "meet the press"... >> i hope no one would vote for me, either for me or because of my religion. >> ...where every occupant of the oval office has appeared since the kennedy administration...
218 Views
IN COLLECTIONS
MSNBC WestUploaded by TV Archive on
![](http://athena.archive.org/0.gif?kind=track_js&track_js_case=control&cache_bust=1052641543)