The Black Widow

Summary

Summary of “The Black Widow” – 48 Hours Podcast Episode

Introduction In the gripping episode titled “The Black Widow” from CBS News' award-winning podcast series 48 Hours, host Anne-Marie Green delves into one of Knoxville, Tennessee’s most perplexing and controversial criminal cases. This episode meticulously unpacks the mysterious deaths of two of Rainella Leith’s husbands, exploring the intricate web of suspicion, legal battles, and lingering questions that continue to haunt the community.

Background: Rainella Leith’s Life and Losses Rainella Leith, a 68-year-old grandmother and former nurse, found herself at the center of a chilling narrative that earned her the moniker “Black Widow.” Her tumultuous personal life is marked by the tragic deaths of two husbands.

• First Husband: Ed Dossett Rainella’s first husband, Ed Dossett, was a respected figure in Solway, a tight-knit community just outside Knoxville. Together, they raised three children on a 165-acre family farm. Ed, elected as Knox County District Attorney General, and Rainella, director of nursing at Park West Hospital, were once the power couple of the town. However, their happiness was short-lived. At 43, Ed was diagnosed with terminal cancer but died nine months later not from his illness, but in what was reported as a freak farming accident—being trampled by his own cattle. Suspicion lingered locally, with many questioning the plausibility of such an accident, especially considering Ed’s weakened state due to cancer and heavy medications. Diane Fanning, a bestselling author and 48 Hours consultant, suggests a possible motive tied to insurance, hypothesizing that an accident might have provided a more substantial payout for Rainella and the children compared to Ed’s medical benefits.

• Second Husband: David Leith Six months after Ed’s untimely death, Rainella swiftly remarried David Leith, a local barber and Ed’s best friend. The marriage was a whirlwind romance, celebrated by family and friends alike. However, less than two years into their marriage, tragedy struck again when their 11-year-old son was killed in a car crash. Shortly thereafter, David began exhibiting erratic behavior, consulting neurologists for signs of dementia and depression. Concerned, Rainella documented her fears in a private journal, noting David’s increasing volatility.

The Mysterious Deaths and Initial Investigations On March 13, 2003, David Leith was found dead from a gunshot wound to the forehead. Initially reported as a suicide, inconsistencies quickly surfaced. Detective Moyers from the sheriff's department highlighted several anomalies:

• Multiple gunshot wounds inconsistent with a typical suicide scene.
• The positioning of Rainella at the scene with no signs of forced entry or struggle.
• Absence of fingerprints or ballistic evidence linking Rainella to the weapon.

[03:06] Rainella Leith: “Everything good about this woman was twisted. Everything good about this woman was turned around to be evil.”

Legal Proceedings: Trials and Convictions Rainella's case became a focal point of controversy, especially given her late husband's role as a District Attorney General. The prosecution faced significant challenges, including potential conflicts of interest within the office and a lack of clear motive. Nevertheless, Rainella was charged with David Leith’s murder in 2006, bringing her first trial in 2009. The initial trial ended in a mistrial with an 11-1 deadlock favoring conviction. A subsequent trial in 2010 resulted in a unanimous conviction, sentencing Rainella to life in prison.

However, unforeseen circumstances led to the overturning of her conviction. The presiding judge was removed due to a drug addiction, rendering the trial invalid and leading to Rainella’s release after six years behind bars. This revelation further fueled suspicions about her potential involvement in Ed Dossett’s death, which was reclassified from an accident to a morphine overdose—suggesting possible foul play.

[21:19] Rainella Leith: “I felt like justice had been served and I was happy.”

The Third Trial and Overturning Conviction Four years post-conviction, Rainella faced a third trial. Prosecutors presented forensic evidence, including the analysis of a Colt 38 police special revolver, blood spatter patterns, and cartridge traces, to substantiate their claims of premeditated homicide. The prosecution argued that the sequence of shots and blood patterns could only align with Rainella’s direct involvement.

Conversely, Rainella’s defense maintained that David Leith could have inflicted the wounds himself, citing phenomena like cadaveric spasm, where a body's muscles contract after death. Experts on both sides debated the forensic interpretations, leaving room for reasonable doubt.

[32:41] Narrator: “If the record could reflect I’m pointing to the hole in the middle of the headboard.”

Ultimately, after fourteen years embroiled in legal battles, Rainella’s conviction was overturned. The trial judge, recognizing the prosecution’s failure to meet the burden of proof, granted a judgment of acquittal.

[40:38] Narrator: “In short, the state has failed to meet their burden. The defendant’s motion for judgment of acquittal is granted.”

Aftermath and Community Reactions The resolution of Rainella’s case left the community and David Leith’s family grappling with unresolved emotions and unanswered questions.

• Family’s Perspective David’s daughter, Cindy Wilkerson, remains unconvinced by Rainella’s acquittal. She expressed disbelief and frustration over the verdict, feeling that justice was never truly served.

  [44:29] Cindy Wilkerson: “When Joshua Hedrick 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.”

• Legal and Judicial Reflections Judge Paul Summers, now retired, defended his decision to acquit, citing insufficient evidence to conclusively prove Rainella’s guilt. He emphasized the importance of not passing the burden of proof onto the jury when the prosecution failed to establish key elements such as motive and opportunity.

  [42:21] Judge Summers: “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.”

Additional Layers: Steve Walker’s Allegations The episode further uncovers allegations against Rainella related to Steve Walker, Ed Dossett’s ex-wife’s secretary. Steve claimed that Rainella attempted to murder him during a heated confrontation about an affair, leading to an attempted shooting for which Rainella pled guilty to a lesser charge of assault. This incident adds another layer to the accusations against her, painting a more complex picture of her character and potential motives.

[37:55] Steve Walker: “But the former marksman missed. Steve started running, but tripped and fell.”

Concluding Insights “The Black Widow” serves as a compelling examination of a case fraught with complexity, where legal maneuvering, forensic debates, and personal vendettas intertwine. It challenges listeners to ponder the nuances of justice, the reliability of evidence, and the profound impact such cases have on all involved parties.

Notable Quotes and Moments

• Rainella Leith’s Characterization of Her Trial: [03:06] Rainella Leith: “Everything good about this woman was twisted. Everything good about this woman was turned around to be evil.”

• Judge Summers on His Decision: [42:10] Narrator: “And he agreed, strictly based on the evidence that I heard on both sides, but particularly on the state side.”

• Cindy Wilkerson’s Frustration: [44:29] Cindy Wilkerson: “If you had gotten to vote, how would you have voted guilty? How would you have voted guilty? How would you have voted guilty?”

• Closing Reflections: [46:22] Rainella Leith: “If you like this podcast, you can listen ad free right now by joining Wondery and the Wondery app.”

Conclusion “The Black Widow” is a testament to 48 Hours’ commitment to uncovering the truth behind complex criminal cases. By weaving together investigative journalism, personal narratives, and legal analysis, Anne-Marie Green presents a narrative that is both informative and emotionally resonant. This episode not only sheds light on Rainella Leith’s controversial trials but also invites listeners to reflect on the broader themes of justice, evidence, and the human propensity for doubt.

Transcript

[Narrator]

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[Reporter]

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[Narrator]

David taught himself how to make bread. Good bread. He wanted to get even better. So he asked ChatGPT on Expedia if there's such a thing as a bread vacation. Chatgpt said, sure. Do you want to go to Normandy, Morocco, Ireland or Tuscany? And that's how David became a master pizzaiolo. You were made to learn new things. We were made to give you trip ideas with ChatGPT right in our app Expedia made to travel. Statements 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's hurt himself. The report on the 911 call was that he had shot himself. Gentleman's laying in a bed, guns laying beside him. Look right. 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 unhear, well, it didn't look like a suicide scene. And the statements 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.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

No.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

No.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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?

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

His decision and he takes Aang. He's a great lawyer. He's super prepared. Fantastic lawyer. Fantastic. He's 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 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.

[Reporter]

Inside this courthouse in Knoxville, Tennessee, let.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

There is the gentility.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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?

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

Help me, help me, my husband's hurting stuff.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

This is Detective Moyers with the sheriff's department. We're out on a possible suicide gunshot wound.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

No sign of a nose or anything laying around anywhere.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

Just call 4th floor. They can tell you.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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 Dosset, 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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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? She's charming.

[Narrator]

I said to my mother, I thought he had 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.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

She was very sad and very, very heartbroken.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

They didn't seem as happy as they.

[Reporter]

Were when they first got married five years later. More heartbreak. David was hospitalized. He began seeing a neurologist for signs of dementia and depression. In early 2003, Raynella says 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?

[Narrator]

Somebody had shot him. But I knew that he didn't do it. Harvard is the oldest and richest university in America. But when a social media fueled fight over Harvard and its new president broke out last fall, that was no protection. Claudine Gay is now gone. We've exposed the DEI regime and there's much more to come. This is the Harvard Plan, a special series from the Boston Globe and WNYC's on the Media. To listen, subscribe to onthemedia wherever you get your podcasts. He was hip hop's biggest mogul.

[Reporter]

The man who redefined fame, fortune, and the music industry.

[Narrator]

The first male rapper to be honored on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Sean Diddy Combs.

[Reporter]

Diddy built an empire and lived a.

[Narrator]

Life most people only dream about.

[Reporter]

Everybody know ain't no party like a Diddy party.

[Narrator]

So yeah, that's what's up.

[Reporter]

But just as quickly as his empire rose, it came crashing down. Today I'm announcing the unsealing of a.

[Narrator]

Three count indictment charging Sean Combs with racketeering, conspiracy, sex trafficking, interstate transportation for prostitution. I was up and I hit rock bottom, but I made no excuses. I. Disgusting. I'm so sorry. Until you're wearing an orange jumpsuit, it's not real. Now it's real.

[Reporter]

From his meteoric rise to his shocking.

[Narrator]

Fall from grace from law and crime.

[Reporter]

This is the rise and fall of Diddy.

[Narrator]

Listen to the rise and fall of.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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?

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

He was totally blond out of that eye.

[Reporter]

As her doubts soared, so did her suspicions about her stepmother's role. And she wasn't alone. Within 24 hours, Dr. Derinka Malusinek, 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.

[Narrator]

Investigation, indictment, trial.

[Reporter]

But it doesn't.

[Narrator]

No, not even close.

[Reporter]

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, New Ed or new Ranella. There was a conflict of interest. Finding an outside prosecutor to take the leath 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, Brainella 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?

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

What's more, folks wondered how Ed, weak with cancer and heavily medicated, even managed to get all the way from his house to the cattle. He died in a way that almost sounded like something you hear on a soap opera. Diane Fanning says there had been a theory going around Solway that Dossett'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 from 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 Raynella was charged with David Leith's murder, the same medical examiner who ruled that death a homicide reviewed ed Dosset's file. Dr. Malusnek 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. Rainella was now being described as a Black Widow. Even though she had never gone to trial on any death? 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 Leath'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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

I would describe her as lucky. Very lucky.

[Reporter]

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?

[Narrator]

I was devastated. Couldn't believe it.

[Reporter]

Fourteen years after the death of David Leath.

[Narrator]

Call the jury in please.

[Reporter]

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 case?

[Narrator]

Snake bit. Because what can go wrong, will go wrong.

[Reporter]

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, the.

[Narrator]

Person who delivered that fatal blow was a defendant, Rainella.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

You're describing a pretty cold blooded killer.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

Can identify that for the prosecution. The gun, a Colt 38 police special revolver, reveals some of the most important clues.

[Narrator]

May I step down?

[Reporter]

Don Carmen is a former Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agent.

[Narrator]

Like I said, it's a very old, simple farm. However, very effective.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

Was David Leath in any way capable of any sort of voluntary movement after that bullet transected his brain?

[Reporter]

None whatsoever. Next, prosecutors turn 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.

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

Multiple shot suicides are not impossible. They happen.

[Reporter]

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. She's got hope that the justice system 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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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. Because in my discipline, they would be not testable.

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

What would you have ruled this?

[Narrator]

I would have ruled this undetermined.

[Reporter]

Which 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.

[Narrator]

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?

[Reporter]

In a previous trial, Dr. Malusic testified that many the medications found in David's system 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. Dr. Malusnik declined 48 hours request for an interview. But in Renella's third trial, she stands firm that David Leith's death was a homicide.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

No, I cannot.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

You don't believe in ghosts. I get it. Lots of people don't. I didn't either until I came face to face with them. Ever since that moment, hauntings, spirits and the unexpected explained have consumed my entire life. I'm Nadine Bailey. I've been a ghost tour guide for the past 20 years. I've taken people along with me into the shadows, uncovering the macabre tales that linger in the darkness and inside some of the most haunted houses, hospitals, prisons and more. Join me every week on my podcast, Haunted Canada as we journey through terrifying and bone chilling stories of the unexplained search for Haunted Canada on Apple Podcast, Spotify, Amazon Music or wherever you find your favorite podcasts. UFO lands in Suffolk and that's official, said the News of the World. But what really happened across two nights in December 1980 when US servicemen saw mysterious lights and the forest near RAF Woodbridge and claimed to have had a close encounter with an actual craft?

[Narrator]

Encounters, a new podcast available exclusively on Wondery plus, takes a deep dive into one of the most famous and still unresolved UFO encounters to ever take place in the uk. Featuring shocking testimony from first hand witnesses, hosts, journalist, podcaster and UFO researcher Andy McGrillan and producer L. Scott take us back to the nights in question and examine all of the evidence and conflicting theories about what was encountered in the middle of a Snowy Suffolk Forest 40 years ago.

[Reporter]

Are we alone? Encounters is a podcast which is going to find out. Listen to Encounters exclusively in ad free on Wondry plus. Join Wondry plus in the Wondry app or in Apple Podcasts In a final and dramatic attempt to convince a jury of suicide, the defense brings the blood stained bed to the courtroom still preserved.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

If I were to lie in bed and I were to aim at my head and pull the trigger and mishy and create this.

[Reporter]

Yes.

[Narrator]

And then, frustrated that I missed, sat up and pulled the trigger. It would enter my head here.

[Reporter]

Yes.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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 and at that point it was David. He was acting with his physicians suicidal.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

But for the prosecution, the most incriminating evidence isn't at the crime scene. It's at the barbershop where Rainella 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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

Was that normal?

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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 2:20 minutes later.

[Narrator]

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 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?

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

It's the only explanation. Rainella Leath is guilty of the first degree premeditated homicide of dated leaf. 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.

[Reporter]

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 don't know about Steve Walker.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

Raynella. Yes. I thought we was on the same team.

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

Trying to piss on my husband's grave.

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

When they got to Ranella'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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

But the gun click was out of bullets.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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. Rainella Leath did walk away, and I.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

Something happens that no one sees coming.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

If it please the court, It's a.

[Reporter]

Defense motion called a Rule 29. Pursuant to Rule 29, a routine request made in nearly every 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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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 Leath is dismissed.

[Reporter]

Not guilty. The judge, on his own, acquits Rainella Leath 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.

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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?

[Reporter]

And how do you explain that?

[Narrator]

I can't. Only Judge Summers can.

[Reporter]

So we asked Judge Summers, now retired, to make his case to 48 hours.

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

Yes.

[Reporter]

You did?

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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 Leith had the time or the opportunity to commit it.

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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?

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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 guilty? How would you have voted guilty? How would you have voted guilty? Do you feel Raynell Elise got away with murder?

[Narrator]

I absolutely feel she got away with murder.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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.

[Narrator]

That's fantasy.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

When Joshua Hedrick 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.

[Reporter]

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?

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

How do you feel?

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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

[Reporter]

She walks away a free woman.

[Narrator]

Do you have anything to leave my mom alone?

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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.

[Reporter]

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

[Narrator]

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, Rainella Leaf. If you like this podcast, you can listen ad free right now by joining Wondery and the Wondery app. Before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a quick [e-mail] survey.