The Black Widow

Summary

Summary of "The Black Widow" Episode from "48 Hours" by CBS News

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1. Introduction

"The Black Widow" episode of CBS News' "48 Hours" delves into the complex and riveting case of Rainella Leith, a 68-year-old grandmother accused of murdering two husbands. The episode meticulously explores the events surrounding the deaths of her first husband, Ed Dossett, and her second husband, David Leith, unraveling a narrative filled with suspicion, legal battles, and unanswered questions.

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2. The Death of David Leith

On March 13, 2003, David Lee Leith was found dead with a single gunshot wound to his forehead at his residence in Solway, Tennessee. The initial 911 call by Rainella Leith suggested a suicide, but several discrepancies raised immediate suspicions.

[00:22] Josh Hedrick: "Paramount plus celebrates Black voices from climbing to success in Bob Marley One love."

[00:30] Josh Hedrick: "It's a place for our community."

Detectives observed that:

• Multiple Gunshot Wounds: Contrary to the single wound reported in the suicide note, there were multiple bullet trajectories, indicating more than one shot fired.

• No Signs of Forced Entry or Struggle: The absence of forced entry and signs of struggle suggested that David wasn't coerced, but the presence of only Rainella at the scene increased suspicions.

[01:57] Diane Fanning: "That's a problem, isn't it? In this case."

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3. Rainella Leith: Background and Relationships

Rainella Leith, a former nurse and a devout member of her community, had a history marked by personal losses and rapid remarriages. Her first husband, Ed Dossett, died in 1992 under what was initially deemed an accidental farming incident. Less than a year later, Rainella married David Leith, Ed's best friend and neighbor.

[11:02] Diane Fanning: "But Raynella's newfound happiness was short lived. Less than two years after she remarried, her 11-year-old son was killed in a car crash."

Rainella's protective nature over her children and her status as a respected figure in the community made the allegations against her even more shocking.

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4. Initial Investigation and Suspicion

Cindy Wilkerson, David's daughter, harbored doubts about the suicide narrative. She questioned the plausibility of her father dying by suicide given his fear of guns and the mechanics of the shooting.

[13:34] Josh Hedrick: "My dad was fun, loving, caring, and it's a joy to use the same chair he did."

Within days of the incident, the Knox County Medical Examiner ruled David's death a homicide, citing inconsistencies in the 911 call and the gunshot evidence.

[14:24] Josh Hedrick: "He was totally blind out of that eye."

These findings directed the investigation towards Rainella, who became the prime suspect in her second husband's death and, retrospectively, in her first husband's death as well.

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5. Trials and Convictions

Rainella faced her first trial in 2009, six years after David's death. The prosecution presented evidence suggesting premeditation:

• Gun Analysis: The firearm used had three cartridges, with the third being a different type of bullet. The prosecution argued this indicated an attempt to cover up the murder by leaving gunshot residue on David.

[21:32] Diane Fanning: "He argues Rainella's murderous plan unraveled the moment she fired that first shot and missed."

Despite the state's efforts, the jury deadlocked with an 11-1 decision, resulting in a mistrial.

A subsequent trial a year later ended in a unanimous conviction of first-degree murder, sentencing Rainella to life in prison.

[19:34] Josh Hedrick: "I felt like justice had been served, and I was happy."

With Rainella convicted for the murder of David Leith, prosecutors dropped charges related to her first husband's death.

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6. Overturned Conviction and Final Trial

Six years into her imprisonment, Rainella's conviction was overturned due to the judge's severe drug addiction, which compromised the trial's integrity.

[19:55] Josh Hedrick: "I would describe her as lucky. Very lucky."

The final trial in May 2017 faced renewed scrutiny. The prosecution reiterated the three-shot theory, while the defense presented alternative explanations, suggesting the possibility of David committing suicide.

[25:23] Josh Hedrick: "Each and every one of these shots could have been accomplished by David Leath himself."

Despite the strength of the prosecution's case, Judge Paul Summers granted a motion for judgment of acquittal, declaring Rainella not guilty.

[37:52] Josh Hedrick: "In short, the state has failed to meet their burden. The defendant's motion for judgment of acquittal is granted. The defendant, Rainella Leath, is not guilty. The case against Rainella Leith is dismissed."

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7. Verdict and Aftermath

The final verdict stunned both the prosecution and David's family. Rainella walked free, leaving behind a community divided and a family seeking closure.

[38:35] Diane Fanning: "David Leith's daughter Cindy sits stunned. The prosecution does too."

Jurors expressed confusion and frustration over the judge's decision:

[38:59] Josh Hedrick: "We were just used. I mean, they just used us as set pieces, pretty much."

Judge Summers defended his decision, emphasizing insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Rainella had the motive or opportunity to commit the murders.

[39:12] Diane Fanning: "So we asked Judge Summers, now retired, to make his case deformed."

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8. Reactions and Current Status

The community remains polarized. Some continue to label Rainella as a "black widow," while others support her innocence or acknowledge the legal outcome without definitive conclusions on her guilt.

[41:35] Josh Hedrick: "That's fantasy."

David's family, particularly his daughter Cindy, grapple with unresolved grief and the lack of justice, feeling that Rainella evaded true accountability.

[42:05] Diane Fanning: "It wasn't just these three, they say. Shortly after the judge's decision, a majority of jurors gathered near the courthouse and came to the same conclusion."

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9. Conclusion

"The Black Widow" episode masterfully navigates the intricate details of Rainella Leith's case, highlighting the challenges of the legal system in complex murder investigations. From initial suspicions to multiple trials and an unexpected acquittal, the story underscores the enduring quest for truth and justice in the face of ambiguity and community skepticism.

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Notable Quotes:

• Josh Hedrick on Evidence:

  "[02:29] Josh Hedrick: 'Everything good about this woman was twisted. Everything good about this woman was turned around to be evil.'”

• Diane Fanning on Rainella's Character:

  "[06:33] Diane Fanning: 'You've got an unbelievable character. There were people she knew in college who said, well, she was great. She was a lot of fun, as long as you didn't cross her.'”

• Judge Summers on Acquittal:

  "[39:35] Diane Fanning: 'Did you choose to do this? To end this case, to finally end this case?'"
  "[39:40] Josh Hedrick: 'Yes.'"

• Josh Hedrick on Verdict:

  "[43:29] Josh Hedrick: 'There is a difference between being not guilty and being innocent. If the state does not prove its case, they are found not guilty. It doesn't say that they're innocent.'”

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This comprehensive summary encapsulates the key elements of "The Black Widow" podcast episode, offering listeners a clear and detailed understanding of the Rainella Leith case without needing to reference the original transcript.

Transcript

[Josh Hedrick]

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[Diane Fanning]

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[Josh Hedrick]

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[Diane Fanning]

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[Josh Hedrick]

To success in Bob Marley One love.

[Diane Fanning]

Music can lead the way to stories.

[Josh Hedrick]

Of love and community in the shy. It's a place for our community. Explore the Black Voices collection on Paramount Stream now. Call Rise. Court's decisions show that on March 13, 2003, David Lee was killed by a single gunshot wound to his forehead. Knox County 911. Help me. Help me. My husband hurt himself. The report on the 911 call was that he'd shot himself. Gentleman's laying in a bed, guns laying beside him. Look right here. Here's another hole. He's fired more than once. Look right above his head there. There's also a shot into the bed, which is a little suspicious in itself. There was more than one shot. And while that's not unheard of, well, it didn't look like a suicide scene. And the state will show that the person who delivered that fatal blow was the defendant, Rainella Leaf. He was shot almost in the middle of his forehead, but right above his left eye. There were no signs of forced entry. There were no signs of a struggle. And there was no one else at the residence but the defendant.

[Diane Fanning]

Can you connect Rainella to that weapon? Fingerprints? Anyone see or pick up the gun?

[Josh Hedrick]

No.

[Diane Fanning]

To any of the bullets that were used in that gun?

[Josh Hedrick]

No.

[Diane Fanning]

That's a problem, isn't it? In this case.

[Josh Hedrick]

Everything good about this woman was twisted. Everything good about this woman was turned around to be evil. There's not any real evidence to suggest a homicide. And if I were to pull the trigger in this direction, I could strike myself the left eyebrow. Am I right?

[Diane Fanning]

Yes, you could. There was only one person who wanted to harm David. And at that point, it was David. He was acting suicidal, and he makes.

[Josh Hedrick]

His decision and he takes aim. He's a great lawyer. He's super prepared. Fantastic lawyer. Fantastic. A bad actor. I just tried to focus on the evidence and where that was leading me. It was hard for me to determine. You'll tell me if that's approximately one foot where we were going with certain things and trying to piece those things together. Inside each line is an individual stain. But you're not making a decision just by yourself. You're making a decision as a group. This is a decision never to be taken lightly. And I assure you that this court takes this responsibility very seriously. As a senior judge, most every case that I try is somewhat controversial. Now, in this case, it's kind of simple. If it was a homicide, did the evidence show that Rainella Leith committed the homicide? Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I really could not believe what he was saying as he said it. You're not quite sure if this is really where this is going. I personally have studied every shred of evidence or testimony just like you have. Oh, I gotta breathe. No matter where we think we're going here, that can't be how this ends. 48 hours. The widow on Solway Road. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

[Diane Fanning]

Inside this courthouse in Knoxville, Tennessee, let.

[Josh Hedrick]

The record reflect that all the jurors are in the box and all parties are present.

[Diane Fanning]

A real life drama is taking place that rivals any Southern Gothic novel.

[Josh Hedrick]

I'm Josh Hedvig. We haven't met before, have we? No, we haven't. It's a pleasure.

[Diane Fanning]

This is not a story that would happen in a sleepy New England town. It's too Southern.

[Josh Hedrick]

He would bring her a rose once a week and they would go out to dinner.

[Diane Fanning]

There is the gentility.

[Josh Hedrick]

With your permission, I'll remove my coat because I had some difficulty with it previously.

[Diane Fanning]

And underneath that very respectable surface, it seems like everything's rotting to the core.

[Josh Hedrick]

Unless you really know what's inside somebody's mind. If I were to then place it here. You don't really know why they do what they do, do you?

[Diane Fanning]

Bestselling author Diane Fanning has written about this case and the players. This is something that a fiction writer would write about.

[Josh Hedrick]

Give us your name, please, ma'am. Rainella Leith.

[Diane Fanning]

Rainella Leath, a 68 year old grandmother, is at the center of this extraordinary tale.

[Josh Hedrick]

Have you decided whether or not you wish to testify in your trial? I do not wish to testify. Very well.

[Diane Fanning]

You've got an unbelievable character. There were people she knew in college who said, well, she was great. She was a lot of fun, as long as you didn't cross her. And ever since 2003, the former nurse has been the prime suspect in the death of her second husband, David Leath.

[Josh Hedrick]

Help me. Help me. My husband's turning 7.

[Diane Fanning]

It was Rainella's 911 call on the morning of March 13, 2003 that sent police rushing to the Leith home.

[Josh Hedrick]

This is Detective Moyers for the Sheriff's department. We're out on a possible suicide, gunshot wound.

[Diane Fanning]

These are audio and video recordings made by police at the scene.

[Josh Hedrick]

No sign of a nose or anything lying around anywhere.

[Diane Fanning]

Listen to investigators as they begin wondering about that death called in as a suicide.

[Josh Hedrick]

The gun's laying next to his left hand, which is curled underneath him. We got three fired rounds. What I have a problem with is one is where the round's at and the way he's laying. I'm not saying it stinks, I'm just saying it strikes.

[Diane Fanning]

Detectives wanted to establish where Raynella had been all morning and she agreed to talk the only time she's spoken on the record. She remembers watching television with her husband David that morning before leaving his breakfast on the nightstand.

[Josh Hedrick]

He kissed me goodbye and he said, if I'm not here when you get back, I'll be at the wire. I said, okay.

[Diane Fanning]

It was close to 9:30, she says, when she headed to the hospital to visit her mother in law.

[Josh Hedrick]

Just call 4th floor so he can tell you.

[Diane Fanning]

When she arrived home shortly after 11, she found her husband laying in a bloody bed with a gunshot to his head.

[Josh Hedrick]

I could tell something was wrong when I looked at him. I mean, I've worked in an emergency room before. I know where did he keep his gun at? I don't know where that gun is from. I've never seen that gun in my whole life.

[Diane Fanning]

The gun was believed to have belonged to David's parents. David's sudden death left Rainella a grieving widow for the second time. Her first husband, Ed Dossett, had died 11 years earlier. Rainella and Ed met at East Tennessee State University where she was on the rifle team and studying to be a nurse. He planned to go to law school. What drew those two together? Rainella was such a confident woman. She had presence and I think that Ed was really drawn to that. They married and moved to Ed's 165 acre family farm in the tight knit community of Solway just outside Knoxville, where they raised cattle and three children, Maggie, Eddie Jr. And Katie. Rainella was extremely protective of her children. They became the power couple in town when Ed was elected Knox County District Attorney General. Rainella was Director of Nursing at Park West Hospital. But their lives took a tragic turn when at the age of 43, Ed was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Nine months later, he died, not from his illness, but in a Freak farming accident. But Rainella wasn't a widow for long. Six months later, she shocked friends and family when she remarried. David Leath was a local barber and Ed Dossett's best friend and neighbor.

[Josh Hedrick]

She fixed his food and started his car in the morning and she just treated him like a king.

[Diane Fanning]

David's daughter, Cindy Wilkerson and his cousin Beth Roberts say the whirlwind romance was all the talk in Solway. What do you think he saw in Rainella?

[Josh Hedrick]

She's charming. I said to my mother, I thought he'd hit the jackpot with this girl because she was so pretty and so interesting. I just thought this is going to be a great fit.

[Diane Fanning]

But Raynella's newfound happiness was short lived. Less than two years after she remarried, her 11 year old son was killed in a car crash.

[Josh Hedrick]

She was very sad and very, very heartbroken.

[Diane Fanning]

Cindy says she began seeing changes in Rainella and her father's relationship.

[Josh Hedrick]

They didn't seem as happy as they were when they first got married.

[Diane Fanning]

Five years later, more heartbreak. David was hospitalized. He began seeing a neurologist for signs of dementia and depression in early 2003. Rayne Ellis. As David's behavior became more erratic, concerned, she began making notes in a private journal. On January 19, she wrote Dave hateful today. I cried and cried. Three days later things hadn't improved. Dave hateful, controlling his way or no way I cried. Seven weeks after writing those words, David was dead. What did you think had happened to your dad?

[Josh Hedrick]

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[Diane Fanning]

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[Josh Hedrick]

Success in Bob Marley One love music can lead the way to stories of love and community in the Chi. It's a place for our community. Explore the Black Voices collection on Paramount Stream now.

[Diane Fanning]

Do you miss your dad? Every day, every haircut, every styling in the middle chair at this Knoxville barbershop was reminds Cindy Wilkerson of her father David Leath. It's the same chair he used for 39 years.

[Josh Hedrick]

My dad was fun, loving, caring, and it's a joy to use the same chair he did.

[Diane Fanning]

Cindy inherited the chair in 2000 when her father suddenly retired at the age of 54. What he kept secret were all those visits to the neurologist. If he was suicidal over dementia. Cindy never saw it. When Rainella said your dad committed suicide, did you initially think, well, maybe he did, but it's just hard to believe?

[Josh Hedrick]

No, I never did think that. My dad was scared to death of guns. And I knew that he couldn't have done that.

[Diane Fanning]

And Cindy questioned why her right handed father would have used his left hand to shoot himself above his left eye.

[Josh Hedrick]

He was totally blind out of that eye.

[Diane Fanning]

As her doubts soared, so did her suspicions about her stepmother's role. And she wasn't alone. Within 24 hours, Dr. Derinka Malusnek, the Knox county medical examiner, discounted Rainella's claim of suicide and ruled David Lee's death a homicide. Rainella became the focus of attention. It was clear to David's family what should happen next.

[Josh Hedrick]

Investigation, indictment, trial.

[Diane Fanning]

But it doesn't.

[Josh Hedrick]

No, not even close.

[Diane Fanning]

Remember, Rainella was the widow of a district Attorney General crime writer and 48 Hours consultant Diane Fanning says that was the problem. Almost everybody working in that office either worked with Ed, knew Ed, or knew Rinella. There was a conflict of interest. Finding an outside prosecutor to take the Leith case dragged on, making things more difficult. No one could figure out the motive. Murder doesn't always make sense. Cindy was becoming more and more frustrated. She wanted something to be done about her father's murder. With the criminal case stalled in March 2006, Cindy filed a civil suit against Rainella to stop her from inheriting David's estate. Prosecutors took notice. Three and a half years after David Lee's death, Rainella was charged with his murder. And that's when old suspicions surfaced about the death of her first husband. Ed Dossett had been found in a field in July 1992, surrounded by his cattle. He had apparently been trampled to death. Did anyone wonder about how Ed Dossett died?

[Josh Hedrick]

Yes, the reports were an agricultural accident. But some folks in the community had a problem with that scenario. Ed grew up on a farm. For him to have been trampled by his own cattle, that just didn't make sense.

[Diane Fanning]

What's more, folks wondered how Ed, weak with cancer and heavily medicated, even managed to get all the way from his house to. To the cattle. He died in a way that Almost sounded like something you'd hear on a soap opera. Diane Fanning says there had been a theory going around Solway that Dosset's death was actually about insurance. Rainella and the kids would get a bigger payout if it was an accident instead of cancer. It might have even been Ed Dossett's idea himself. Couldn't it have been? It could have been Ed Dossett's idea. And that's what stopped some of the other people for wanting to pursue it. Because if Ed knew he was about to die, but he wanted his family to be more secure financially, he might have said, take me out there. Let the cows tromp on me. Nearly a year after Raynellen was charged with David Leigh's murder, the same medical examiner who ruled that death a homicide reviewed Ed Dosset's. Dr. Malusinek determined it wasn't cattle that killed him. It was a morphine overdose. It was a huge story. The widow of a district attorney general was now charged with murdering two husbands. Raynella was now being described as a black widow, even though she had never gone to trial on any. No, it was just suspicions were gathering around her, which is why Diane Fanning called her book her deadly web. Is it possible that Rainella Leith is just a very unlucky woman? Yeah, but coincidence makes me itchy. Prosecutors decide to try her for David Leith's murder first. In 2009, six years after his death, Rainella finally went on trial. But it turns out that was only the beginning. The jury deadlocked 11 to 1, 11 to 1 to convict. The judge was forced to declare a mistrial.

[Josh Hedrick]

It was here in Knox county, so it wasn't shocking to me.

[Diane Fanning]

A year later, Rainella was back in court for trial number two. The case was the same, but this time, jurors were unanimous. Rainella was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.

[Josh Hedrick]

I felt like justice had been served, and I was happy.

[Diane Fanning]

So were prosecutors. With Rainella behind bars, they dropped the murder charges for the death of her first husband, Ed Dossett. Never expecting what came next.

[Josh Hedrick]

I would describe her as lucky. Very lucky.

[Diane Fanning]

After she served six years, Rainella's conviction was tossed out. The reason? The trial judge had been seriously impaired with a drug addiction and was kicked off the bench. What was your reaction when you heard the verdict had been overturned?

[Josh Hedrick]

I was devastated. Couldn't believe it.

[Diane Fanning]

Fourteen years after the death of David Leath.

[Josh Hedrick]

Call the jury in, please.

[Diane Fanning]

It's now trial number three. Statements show that on March and prosecutor Steve Crump's Turn to try Rainella Leath. Is there a way to describe this.

[Josh Hedrick]

Case from snake bit? Because what can go wrong, will go wrong.

[Diane Fanning]

It's May 2017. Everyone is ready. The trial, one of the last of senior judge Paul Summers career is set to begin. First to present District Attorney General Steve Crump. In what all sides hope will be the last trial in this case.

[Josh Hedrick]

The person who delivered that fatal blow was a defendant, Raynella Leave.

[Diane Fanning]

He argues Rainella's murderous plan unraveled the moment she fired that first shot and missed.

[Josh Hedrick]

Once she missed, it changed the whole dynamic. She ended his life with that second shot. And then in an attempt to cover up, she fired that third shot to get gunshot residue on him.

[Diane Fanning]

You're describing a pretty cold blooded killer.

[Josh Hedrick]

Yes, that's what I think she is. We'll show you what's been marked previously as Exhibit 36 and ask if you.

[Diane Fanning]

Can identify that for the prosecution. The gun, a Colt.38 Police Special Revolver, reveals some of the most important clues.

[Josh Hedrick]

May I step down?

[Diane Fanning]

Don Carmon is a former Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agent.

[Josh Hedrick]

Like I said, it's a very old simple firearm, however, very effective.

[Diane Fanning]

This picture of the cylinder was taken at the scene. The the three fired rounds have small indentations or hammer strikes in the center of the casing. The unfired rounds do not.

[Josh Hedrick]

For each particular shot, it goes to the next chamber. As you look at it right now, it's going clockwise. Yes, you, Honor.

[Diane Fanning]

Prosecutors say that clockwise rotation of the cylinder tells the order of the shots.

[Josh Hedrick]

The first cartridge fired would be this one, the second would be this one, and the third would be this one.

[Diane Fanning]

The first two cartridges are from silver Remington bullets. Fragments of those were found in the wall and David Lee's head. But the third is different. It's a gold Winchester found shot through the mattress. If that gold bullet was fired last, as the prosecution believes, that means it came after David Leath was already shot in the head, severing his brain stem. Knox County Medical Examiner, Dr. Derinka Malusnik.

[Josh Hedrick]

Was David Lee in any way capable of any sort of voluntary movement after that bullet transected his brain? None whatsoever.

[Diane Fanning]

Next, prosecutors turned to the blood spatter. These round drops of blood on the wall tell investigators that David's head had to be raised nearly a foot above the mattress when the bullet was fired.

[Josh Hedrick]

The only way that all of this works together is that if Rayna Elith is standing at the side of the bed and she misses with that first shot, and we know that the first shot was the one that went into the headboard. He raises up. The second shot occurs, and he falls straight back down to where he was found. You cannot lay in this bed and face that direction and get that blood spatter on the wall. Blood doesn't turn corners.

[Diane Fanning]

But the defense insists that the same evidence was points to David Leath as the shooter.

[Josh Hedrick]

Multiple shot suicides are not impossible. They happen.

[Diane Fanning]

Rainella's team consists of Knoxville criminal attorney Josh Hedrick, along with Rebecca Legrand, a Washington, D.C. based lawyer with a background in science. She was taking care of a sick husband who she loved, and for that to get twisted into what it did is upsetting.

[Josh Hedrick]

She's got hope that the justice system.

[Diane Fanning]

Isn'T so broken that it won't eventually realize the truth, which is that she's an innocent woman with no clear motive presented by the state. The defense starts with those three shots.

[Josh Hedrick]

Each and every one of these shots could have been accomplished by David Leath himself.

[Diane Fanning]

And then raises doubts to Don Carmen about the order of those three shots.

[Josh Hedrick]

You don't know for certain whether the gun was opened or the cartridges manipulated prior to that photo being taken. I do not. And as a result, you're unable to say with any degree of scientific certainty what order the shots were fired in? That's correct. Because in my discipline, they would be not testable.

[Diane Fanning]

But even if the prosecution's order of shots is correct, Kentucky state medical examiner and defense consultant Dr. Greg Davis says David Leath still could have been the shooter.

[Josh Hedrick]

I'll give it to you, it's unusual, but to say because of that it has to be a homicide. I just can't go that far. There is a phenomenon called cadaveric spasm where a person can actually their hands can squeeze immediately upon death.

[Diane Fanning]

What would you have ruled this?

[Josh Hedrick]

I would have ruled this undetermined, which.

[Diane Fanning]

Is what he believes Dr. Malusnek should have done in this case. Remember, within 24 hours of David Leigh's death, Dr. Malusinek called it a homicide. She had not yet seen records from his neurologist or received a complete medical history.

[Josh Hedrick]

Didn't have toxicology, didn't have ballistics, didn't have medical records. It went from can we figure out what happened? To can we prove this was a homicide?

[Diane Fanning]

In a previous trial, Dr. Malusik testified that medications found in David's would have rendered him, and I quote, incapacitated. In other words, he would have been unable to kill himself. But in trial number three, Dr. Malusinek did not repeat that claim. I'm glad that she reassessed and didn't try to make the same claims about toxicology at the third trial. But it's six years too late for my client. Dr. Malusnek declined 48 hours request for an interview. But in Renella's third trial, she stands firm that David Leith's death was a homicide.

[Josh Hedrick]

I was very confident. And 14 years later, I'm even more so confident. Yes.

[Diane Fanning]

Dr. Davis, can you say unequivocally that she didn't kill her husband?

[Josh Hedrick]

No, I cannot.

[Diane Fanning]

But there's not enough evidence to say she did.

[Josh Hedrick]

Right. As a forensic pathologist, at least on the evidence that I've been privy to, there's no way on earth I think she's guilty.

[Diane Fanning]

But there is information Dr. Davis was not privy to.

[Josh Hedrick]

If anybody has any doubts as to whether David was murdered by Rinella, maybe they need to talk to Steve Walker. I see a killer because she tried to kill me. Prepare to be entertained. Gladiator 2 is now streaming on Paramount Plus. You hear that crowd? It's ferociously entertaining.

[Diane Fanning]

I'm just here for the games.

[Josh Hedrick]

And an absolute triumph. Take your father's strength. His name is Maximus. Paul Mescal Pedro Pascal. With Connie Nielsen and Denzel Washington. 10. Strength and Honor. Strength and Honor.

[Diane Fanning]

Gladiator 2 directed by Ridley Scott.

[Josh Hedrick]

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[Diane Fanning]

Let's get messy.

[Josh Hedrick]

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[Diane Fanning]

In a final and dramatic attempt to convince a jury of suicide, the defense brings the blood stained bed to the courtroom still preserved.

[Josh Hedrick]

If the record could reflect. I'm pointing to the hole in the middle of the headboard.

[Diane Fanning]

Defense forensic expert Celia Hartnett. I've marked the portion shows jurors how David Leath could have fired all three shots.

[Josh Hedrick]

If I were to lie in bed and I were to aim at my head and pull the trigger and miss high. And create this. Yes. And then frustrated that I've missed, sat up and pulled the trigger. It would enter my head here.

[Diane Fanning]

Yes.

[Josh Hedrick]

And then if I fell and my hand squeezed again, it would be consistent with this direction.

[Diane Fanning]

Not just with the direction but also with the distance. We're not saying we know exactly what happened. We're just saying we know there are multiple ways that all of this makes sense that don't have anything to do with a homicide. There was only one person who wanted to harm David. And at that point, it was David. He was acting with his physicians, suicidal.

[Josh Hedrick]

He's becoming useless. And a proud man doesn't want to be useless.

[Diane Fanning]

But for the prosecution, the most incriminating evidence isn't at the crime scene. It's at the barbershop where Ranella called Cindy Wilkerson on the morning of the shooting. Rainella had already left David at home. She made the call from Park West Hospital where she was visiting David's mother.

[Josh Hedrick]

She asked me if I had seen my dad and that he had went to work out on an empty stomach.

[Diane Fanning]

Was that normal?

[Josh Hedrick]

No. She never called me at work. That was the first indication on March 13, 2003, that anything was unusual about David Lee.

[Diane Fanning]

The prosecution says the call was part of Rainella's elaborate alibi to prove she wasn't at home with David. But they say she miscalculated. Remember, Rainella told police she put breakfast by the bed and left the house around 9:30. She made the call to Cindy just 20 minutes later.

[Josh Hedrick]

There would have been no reason to say, have you seen him? There would have been no reason to ask if he'd worked out. And there certainly would have been no reason to say he didn't eat his breakfast because. Because there's no way she could have known that unless she had been there and unless the only reason she knew he hadn't eaten breakfast was because he was dead. Have you seen your father today?

[Diane Fanning]

That's the question the prosecution wants burned into jurors minds as both sides make their final case.

[Josh Hedrick]

It's the only explanation. Ranella Leaf is guilty of the first degree premeditated homicide of David Leath. We can't say that the facts exclude the theory that David Leath shot himself. As I demonstrated for you, be as diligent as you have been since we started. And to return a verdict of not guilty murder, David Leath.

[Diane Fanning]

As all eyes turn to the jury, there are things about Rainella Leath they'll never hear. They don't know about Ed Dossett, and they do know about Steve Walker.

[Josh Hedrick]

I'm a crouton on a real big salad here, and this is a big salad in this town.

[Diane Fanning]

Steve Walker's ex wife was Ed Dossett's secretary. Their relationship, as it turns out, was more than just professional. In 1995, three years after Ed's death, Steve found out during divorce proceedings that the son he raised was actually Ed Dossett's biological child. It came as a terrible shock to Steve and Rainella. I mean, in some ways, you felt that you were on her side?

[Josh Hedrick]

Rainella? Yes. I thought we was on the same team.

[Diane Fanning]

He could not have been more wrong. According to a police report filed by Raynella, on the morning of May 26th of that year, she found Steve, quote, acting psychotic near Ed's grave on the farm.

[Josh Hedrick]

Trying to piss on my husband's grave.

[Diane Fanning]

She told police she began firing warning shots into the ground to chase him away, and that Steve then took the weapon and fled on foot. But when Steve filed his own report, he told a very different story. He says that same morning, Rainella picked him up at the auto shop where he works and drove him to the farm to talk about the affair.

[Josh Hedrick]

Till I seen the gun, we was as friendly as me and you right now.

[Diane Fanning]

When they got to Rainella's barn, Steve says she suddenly pulled out a revolver. In a police interview, Steve told investigators Rainella then said, I'll kill you, you son of a bitch. Then I'll raise the sun.

[Josh Hedrick]

She had a towel around her hands, and she comes up with it and starts shooting.

[Diane Fanning]

But the former marksman missed. Steve started running, but tripped and fell.

[Josh Hedrick]

I'm defenseless, she said. I used to be a better shot than that, but I can hit you from here. And she. She aimed that gun, and I closed my eyes. She pulled the trigger. I knew I was gone.

[Diane Fanning]

But the gun, click, was out of bullets.

[Josh Hedrick]

There's no doubt in my mind. If she hadn't run out of bullets, I'd be dead.

[Diane Fanning]

The police believed Steve Walker's story, and Rainella was arrested and charged with attempted murder. But she took a deal and pled guilty to a lesser charge of assault. After six years, her record was cleared. Why would she plead guilty? It's the same thing I would have told her is, this is a plea that will get expunged. There is no jail time. Take this deal and walk away. Raynella Leath did walk away, and I.

[Josh Hedrick]

Thank you for your time and attention. And Ms. Leith thanks you for your time and attention.

[Diane Fanning]

22 years later, she's hoping to walk away, away again. But as the jurors are ready to have their voices heard.

[Josh Hedrick]

As jurors, you are the ones that will decide the case.

[Diane Fanning]

Something happens that no one sees coming.

[Josh Hedrick]

If you can picture, like, a cartoon, you know, of someone's jaw hitting the floor, like, I really, really tried to pay attention and took notes. So I was really looking Forward to deliberating.

[Diane Fanning]

With her daughter by her side, Rainella Leath arrives at court for the final time.

[Josh Hedrick]

Let the record reflect that all parties are present in the courtroom, including the defendant.

[Diane Fanning]

Before the jurors can decide her fate, there's just one more piece of business.

[Josh Hedrick]

If it please the court, it's a.

[Diane Fanning]

Defense motion called a Rule 29. Pursuant to Rule 29, a routine request made in nearly every trial to throw out the case for lack of evidence. In most cases, the judge simply denies the motion and gives the jurors the case.

[Josh Hedrick]

Only two words are required, either motion granted or motion denied.

[Diane Fanning]

But then, like so many times in the story of Rainella Leith, something completely unexpected happens.

[Josh Hedrick]

In short, the state has failed to meet their burden. The defendant's motion for judgment of acquittal is granted. The defendant, Rainella Leath, is not guilty. The case against Rainella Leith is dismissed.

[Diane Fanning]

Not guilty. The judge, on his own, acquits Rainella Leith of murder. After 14 years of suspicion, six years behind bars, and three hard fought trials just like that, it's all over. As the defense celebrates.

[Josh Hedrick]

She's free. She's done. The end.

[Diane Fanning]

David Leith's daughter Cindy sits stunned. The prosecution does too.

[Josh Hedrick]

I don't understand it. I don't have an explanation.

[Diane Fanning]

And under Tennessee law, there's no appeal either, because the judge made his extremely rare decision before the jury began deliberations.

[Josh Hedrick]

Put your money where you're.

[Diane Fanning]

These jurors, initially shocked, become angry.

[Josh Hedrick]

We were just used. I mean, they just used us as set pieces, pretty much. If Judge Summers was so convinced that he was right about the evidence, why not let us deliberate it?

[Diane Fanning]

And how do you explain that?

[Josh Hedrick]

I can't. Only Judge Summers can.

[Diane Fanning]

So we asked Judge Summers, now retired, to make his case deformed.

[Josh Hedrick]

And he agreed strictly based on the evidence that I heard on both sides, but particularly on the state side. If I'd have been the district attorney general, I would not have brought the case to trial.

[Diane Fanning]

Did you choose to do this? To end this case, to finally end this case?

[Josh Hedrick]

Yes.

[Diane Fanning]

You did?

[Josh Hedrick]

I did. When I realized the evidence was legally insufficient, I decided to end this case by doing my job and granting the motion for judgment of acquittal.

[Diane Fanning]

Judge Summers believed that there was enough evidence for the jury to decide a homicide may have occurred. But he was convinced the prosecution didn't meet its burden to prove that Rainella Leath had the time or the opportunity to commit it.

[Josh Hedrick]

There was no gunshot residue found on her clothes or around her. She had an alibi that the state could not prove the time of death. The evidence was clearly insufficient to show that she was the perpetrator of the crime. And finally, there was no evidence to show that she was even the last person ever to see David Leath alive.

[Diane Fanning]

If you were so sure that there wasn't enough evidence for the jury to convict her beyond a reasonable doubt, wouldn't the jury have come to the same conclusion?

[Josh Hedrick]

I was simply doing my job, not trying to pass the buck to the jury.

[Diane Fanning]

Judges sometimes make these extraordinary decisions when they fear jurors might be swayed by emotion and not evidence, and that may have been a factor in this case. While we will never know for sure what the whole jury would have done, we have a clue. If you had gotten to vote, how would you have voted?

[Josh Hedrick]

Guilty.

[Diane Fanning]

How would you have voted guilty. How would you have voted Guilty? Do you feel Raynella Elite got away with murder?

[Josh Hedrick]

I absolutely feel she got away with murder.

[Diane Fanning]

For William McMichael, Jesse Capps, and Michael Persicano, it was the gun that pointed to Rainella as the killer.

[Josh Hedrick]

There's no way David Leigh fired that third shot.

[Diane Fanning]

And you don't believe the defense witness who said, well, you can have this spasm after death that pulled the trigger the third time.

[Josh Hedrick]

That's fantasy.

[Diane Fanning]

What most convinced you, Jesse? That this wasn't just a murder, but that Raynella Leath was the one who killed her husband.

[Josh Hedrick]

When Joshua Hadrick was sitting on that bed and he was twirling that cylinder on that gun, a burden to my family, it was just so corny. A proud man doesn't want to be a burden. It was fake. He was trying so hard. After that, I was like, all right, they're trying so hard that it's so obvious now.

[Diane Fanning]

It wasn't just these three, they say. Shortly after the judge's decision, a majority of jurors gathered near the courthouse and came to the same conclusion. Admittedly, they did not deliberate, but they would have found her guilty. Does that make it worse?

[Josh Hedrick]

Yeah, I guess so, in some ways. But in another sense, it tells me I did the right thing. And more importantly, our work as trial attorneys was spot on.

[Diane Fanning]

For David Lee's family, it's little consolation.

[Josh Hedrick]

He stole that verdict from the family, from the prosecution, from the jury. It was a theft.

[Diane Fanning]

Some in this town will always call her a black widow. But for Rainella Leith, none of that matters. How do you feel, Raynella?

[Josh Hedrick]

How do you feel?

[Diane Fanning]

Do you want to talk to us? Because as she leaves courtroom number two. How are you doing, Rainella?

[Josh Hedrick]

You guys weren't worried about her before. So leave her alone now.

[Diane Fanning]

She walks away a free woman.

[Josh Hedrick]

Do you have any? Please leave my mom alone.

[Diane Fanning]

Did it cross your mind you might be letting a killer go free?

[Josh Hedrick]

You know, there's a difference between being not guilty and being innocent. If the state does not prove its case, they are found not guilty. It doesn't say that they're innocent.

[Diane Fanning]

So you're not saying that Reynella Leith is innocent, you're saying not guilty.

[Josh Hedrick]

There are two entities of which I'm aware that know the answer to that question. One is the good Lord above, and the other one is the defendant, Raynella Lee.

[Diane Fanning]

Paramount celebrates black voices from climbing to.

[Josh Hedrick]

Success in Bob Marley.

[Diane Fanning]

One love Music can lead the way.

[Josh Hedrick]

To stories, stories of love and community in the chi. It's a place for our community. Explore the Black Voices collection on Paramount plus Stream now.