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- [00:01]
Host
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- [01:06]
Narrator
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- [01:13]
Friend or Family Member
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Narrator
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- [01:42]
Theresa Conley
And a robot.
- [01:44]
Child of Jim and Theresa
Every morning we'd wake up and, you know, we'd say, we're the Conleys. We had the four car garage, we had the pool.
- [01:50]
Friend or Family Member
His business went gangbusters. He had tons of clients and he was the kindest, most gentle man you'll ever meet in your life.
- [02:03]
Narrator
Until a fire left their lives in ruins.
- [02:06]
Firefighter or Investigator
It's what they refer to as a full alarm dispatch, three engines and a ladder truck and an EMS unit.
- [02:12]
Child of Jim and Theresa
One day we're living the dream, and the next day we don't know what we're going to do.
- [02:15]
Narrator
As authorities try to make sense of this tragedy, secrets soon emerge from the ashes.
- [02:22]
Firefighter or Investigator
Having this illness, he's not able to work as much, can't provide for the family. They were close to the house going into foreclosure. It was very bleak for them.
- [02:33]
Narrator
Was this the last act of a devoted and desperate father or a cold blooded betrayal.
- [02:41]
Theresa Conley
Love my husband more than self.
- [02:44]
Friend or Family Member
Her affairs have been going on for a while. He caught her several times, Once actually in the act of cheating on him.
- [02:52]
Firefighter or Investigator
She would benefit highly if you have a fire that takes out the home and the husband.
- [02:56]
Theresa Conley
He told me he wanted to die.
- [03:14]
Narrator
June 29, 2007. Ringgold, Georgia. It's 9:34am in the quiet town along the Tennessee border when a proprietor of a local grocery store sees smoke rising from a nearby home.
- [03:30]
Firefighter or Investigator
Gary Carlock owned his family store, Carlock's grocery. He was the one that first saw the flames and the smoke and called it in.
- [03:42]
Narrator
Seven miles away, firefighters with Engine 8 are starting their day. When they get the call.
- [03:51]
Firefighter or Investigator
It'S what they refer to as a full alarm dispatch, three engines and a ladder truck. I'm in an EMS unit, no relay. There's now flames visible. So you're trying to get your game plan, trying to think your way through it.
- [04:04]
Narrator
Firefighters arrive at 9:42am to learn from command. They can't contain this from the outside. They are going in.
- [04:14]
Firefighter or Investigator
The fire looked like it was on the rear side of the home, would come in from the unbar side. So when we talk about the importance of priorities, you think you may be putting fire out. You may also be having a victim in there. We go through this first hallway and we're immediately met with extreme heat and smoke conditions. The visibility was pretty low. We made it to the back bedroom. We'd realized that was the fire room for sure. We suppressed that fire back. And one of the guys with us, he was using a thermal imaging camera.
- [04:51]
Narrator
The technology is capable of picking up a person's heat signature through smoke. As the fireman scans the room, an unsettling shape appears on the screen.
- [05:05]
Firefighter or Investigator
He notified us he did see what looked like to be a victim towards the backside of the bed. When we made it around, what I remember is he was kneeling by the bed in a sense, almost as if he was praying or something. He was unconscious, but he didn't appear to have thermal burns. He definitely had, you know, smoke on his clothes, on his skin. Usually, victims are found very close to the door. They succumb or they just physically can't exert any more energy. While they're trying to remove themselves from.
- [05:42]
Narrator
An environment, they preliminarily ID the victim as the homeowner, James Conley.
- [05:51]
Investigator
Jim Conley was a local chiropractor who had a practice in Dalton, Georgia, nearby.
- [06:04]
Narrator
Although Jim Conley wasn't from north Georgia, he Found it the perfect place to build a career as a small town chiropractor.
- [06:13]
Child of Jim and Theresa
My dad kind of grew up all over the place. We come from a kind of a wealthy background. My great grandfather was Frederick Conley, who founded Monarch Markings and invented one of the first price tag machines. They have over 300 patents.
- [06:30]
Narrator
However, Jim bucked the family business and the money that came with it to make a name for himself in a new profession.
- [06:40]
Friend or Family Member
First time I met him, he had just started out and he was in the back of a beauty shop. He had his chiropractor business back there and I went in there for adjustments. I did his books and he did the chiropractic adjustments for all my kids and grandchildren.
- [07:02]
Narrator
From those humble beginnings, Jim worked hard to build a successful and caring practice.
- [07:09]
Friend or Family Member
Jim's business went gangbusters. He had tons of clients. When he worked on you, you felt good just being around him. Jim was the kindest, most gentle man you'll ever meet in your life.
- [07:24]
Narrator
With his business growing by the year, Jim knew he needed additional employees. The woman that answered his help wanted ad was 21 year old Theresa Boggs.
- [07:36]
Friend or Family Member
As his business started growing, Teresa was his receptionist.
- [07:46]
Narrator
By 1994, Teresa and Jim's working relationship had evolved into a new kind of partnership.
- [07:54]
Theresa's Co-worker
There's a more than 20 year age difference between Teresa and Jim. Theresa is in her 20s, he's in his 50s. But they were in love with each other and the two of them embark on a life together.
- [08:09]
Narrator
In 1996, Jim and Teresa welcomed a son, Caleb.
- [08:14]
Friend or Family Member
I think it was love at first sight. When he seen Caleb, that became his entire world. He was a fantastic dad.
- [08:22]
Child of Jim and Theresa
They had me got married a year later and opened up their practice together, the Alpha Wellness Center.
- [08:29]
Theresa's Co-worker
The two of them embarked on this life goal together of building a successful business. It was an all inclusive health and well being center. Teresa upgraded her own education and became a trained massage therapist.
- [08:46]
Child of Jim and Theresa
My mom, she's from Harlan, Kentucky. Harlan is more of like a small town mindset. You know, women stay home, take care of their man and that was just never for my mom. My mom always wanted to take care of herself, go off and do bigger, better in things.
- [08:59]
Friend or Family Member
She was a great massage therapist. She really was. They were both great.
- [09:07]
Narrator
As their business continued to grow, so did their family. Their second child, Allison was born in 2000. The family settled into a pretty house on an expansive lot in Ringgold.
- [09:20]
Child of Jim and Theresa
Growing up was probably like any little kid's dream. My parents business was just booming at the time. Every morning we'd wake up and you know, we'd say we're the Conleys. We had the four car garage, we had the pool.
- [09:34]
Theresa Conley
It's a robot.
- [09:36]
Friend or Family Member
Jim and Theresa were very doting. The kids did just about everything they wanted. If they wanted it, they had it.
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Child of Jim and Theresa
They made me grow up believing that I could be anything, everything, you know, it was amazing. It really was. They were, they were great parents.
- [09:59]
Narrator
But on the morning of June 29, 2007, that charmed life comes to an abrupt end when a fire breaks out in the Conley's home.
- [10:11]
Firefighter or Investigator
At this point, we immediately conduct a quick search of making sure that there is no other victims in there.
- [10:16]
Narrator
Fortunately, there's no sign of any additional victims. But the fight to save Jim Conley's life isn't so lucky.
- [10:27]
Firefighter or Investigator
After we made entry, he was unconscious. When we had carried him out, they.
- [10:31]
Investigator
Tried to resuscitate him, but they were unsuccessful.
- [10:36]
Narrator
Jim Conley is pronounced dead at the scene. Jim's 34 year old wife Teresa is traveling with their two kids to visit her parents out of synthesis when she gets the call from Georgia authorities.
- [10:55]
Child of Jim and Theresa
My mom's friend Robin answered the phone and I remember Robin screaming, My mom, you know, Teresa pull over the car. Or Teresa pull over the car. You know. And she's just like why? Why? Just tell me, just tell me. And we pulled over. My mom just fell to the ground screaming and crying.
- [11:14]
Narrator
Coming up, investigators sift through the ashes of a life upended.
- [11:21]
Investigator
At the time of the fire, he had got behind on their mortgage. Their finances were not in good shape at all.
- [11:28]
Theresa Conley
That's when stress got worse for him and everything like that. He was depressed.
- [11:34]
Firefighter or Investigator
Do you know what an accelerant is?
- [11:36]
Theresa Conley
No.
- [11:47]
Narrator
June 29, 2007. A house fire has claimed the life of beloved husband and father, 57 year old Jim Conley. News of the tragedy has reached Jim's 34 year old wife Teresa, who is racing back home from a trip to Knoxville, Tennessee.
- [12:08]
Child of Jim and Theresa
My mom couldn't even talk. I remember the telling that my dad had died and that our house was gone and I just kind of went numb.
- [12:21]
Narrator
At the scene of the fire, investigators from the Catoosa County Sheriff's office arrive and examine the victim's body.
- [12:29]
Investigator
He had burns on the soles of his feet. He could have burned his feet by trying to put out the fire or his feet were exposed to the superheated air from lying there on the bed. It appeared that the cause of death was smoke inhalation. But they want to send the body for an autopsy.
- [12:54]
Firefighter or Investigator
Anytime we have a You know, house fire with a fatality, it's automatically investigated. So the fire marshal was called out at that time.
- [13:04]
Investigator
Based on the amount of material that's been burned in the residence and the scope that the smoke has taken over the house. It was established that the fire started around 9 o'clock. They want to look for a point of origin of the fire to determine whether it was some sort of accidental cause or a non accidental cause. You can determine that often by looking by the fire markings on the walls.
- [13:34]
Narrator
As the fire marshal walks through the home, two things in the kitchen catch his attention.
- [13:41]
Investigator
The oven was on and toast was in a little toaster oven on the countertop. But it would appear the oven hadn't really been used, although it was on.
- [13:52]
Firefighter or Investigator
Could there have been a fire started here, you know, or is it just coincidental?
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Narrator
The fire marshal moves on to the back of the house where the damage is more severe.
- [14:02]
Firefighter or Investigator
The bulk of the fire was in the master bedroom and a side like office sitting area where you had a lot of fire damage.
- [14:09]
Investigator
The arson investigators decided the origin of the fire was along a common wall between the office and the bedroom where the victim was found.
- [14:24]
Narrator
Teresa arrives at the scene just after 4pm with 11 year old Caleb and Teresa's best friend Robin Simmons.
- [14:33]
Child of Jim and Theresa
My mom was so distraught. I mean she was just like me. Her whole life was gone in a day.
- [14:38]
Narrator
Detectives at the scene soon start by asking Theresa to lay out her timeline of the morning.
- [14:44]
Investigator
Theresa Connolly indicated she and her friend Robin Simmons and her two children left her home around 8:15 and she was on her way to meet her parents in Knoxville to pick up a car. Shortly after she left her residence, they went to Chick Fil a in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia.
- [15:06]
Narrator
Theresa says they then dropped her daughter Allie off with a babysitter and started the two hour drive drive to her parents house. Robin Simmons confirms Teresa's story with one difference.
- [15:21]
Firefighter or Investigator
Theresa said they left 8:10 to 8:15am her driver Robin Simmons said it was at least 8:45am her time was a.
- [15:35]
Investigator
Little bit different from Theresa Conley's, but she wouldn't expect people who had just gone through such trauma as that to have a precise timeline.
- [15:47]
Narrator
Investigators intend to follow up with both women at a later date. For now, they give Teresa time to grieve with her family and friends.
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Child of Jim and Theresa
I mean here everything's falling apart. We don't know what we're going to do. We stayed with my mom's friend Robin that night that it happened.
- [16:06]
Narrator
As the Conleys grapple with their loss Inside the family home. The fire investigation continues.
- [16:15]
Firefighter or Investigator
The Georgia State Fire Marshal's office. Those guys are trained to extremely high level in locating the cause of this fires. They can look for, you know, naturally caused fires, gases, fuels, lightning strikes, things that are in electrical wires. They're trained to look for accelerants.
- [16:32]
Narrator
A specially trained dog named Smokey is brought to the scene. Within moments he makes a startling discovery.
- [16:43]
Investigator
He found presence of an accelerant placed in that location where he determined the fire had originated. It was pretty clear that it was the Narsen as opposed to an accidental origin for the fire.
- [16:59]
Theresa's Co-worker
Authorities start to realize this is in fact an arson case. And carpet samples are taken and sent off to the lab. Authorities don't initially know who set the fire and why somebody would set a fire at the home. And naturally authorities want to talk to Teresa.
- [17:17]
Narrator
On July 5, six days after the death of Jim Conley, investigators bring his wife Teresa into the sheriff's office for questioning. Investigators tell Teresa they need an exact chronology for the morning of the 29th.
- [17:34]
Theresa Conley
We always woke up 6:30, 7:00, drinking coffee together, talked. I was in the, drove in the car, took me shower, talked to the kids a little bit. Sadie didn't feel well. They told me to see me like and if some people see some toast, then be careful.
- [18:04]
Firefighter or Investigator
Who's the only ones want to leave the house?
- [18:08]
Theresa Conley
I just wanted to give, you know.
- [18:09]
Firefighter or Investigator
I went to give.
- [18:10]
Investigator
Yeah, the timeline is pretty critical. They can give a fairly accurate indication of when the fire started. And it was established that the fire started around 9:00. If they had left around 8:00-8:30, as Theresa Connolly originally said, then she would have been on the road at the time the fire was likely to have been started.
- [18:42]
Narrator
Investigators pressed Teresa about the state of her marriage.
- [18:47]
Theresa Conley
I love my husband more like itself.
- [18:50]
Investigator
So you say you had a good marriage?
- [18:52]
Theresa Conley
We had a wonderful marriage. I mean everybody has their days. You don't like them, you love them, but you don't like them.
- [19:02]
Narrator
Teresa reveals that recently the family has been under quite a bit of strain.
- [19:08]
Investigator
At the time of the fire. But Connolly had got behind on their mortgage. Their finances were not in good shape at all.
- [19:16]
Child of Jim and Theresa
Both of my parents vehicles had just been repossessed and my grandparents were giving my mom a car. So we were meeting them in Knoxville that morning halfway so that they could give us the car and we were driving the rental car.
- [19:29]
Narrator
Teresa explains that their financial problems began when Jim contracted Lyme disease a few years earlier.
- [19:37]
Theresa Conley
That's when things, stress got worse for him and everything like that. He was depressed, but he loved life and he loved what he'd done. And.
- [19:58]
Narrator
45 minutes into the interview, detectives put their cards on the table.
- [20:03]
Firefighter or Investigator
You know what an accelerant is?
- [20:06]
Theresa Conley
No.
- [20:08]
Investigator
Something that helps a fire. Get going.
- [20:11]
Theresa Conley
Okay.
- [20:12]
Narrator
There's accelerant on the floor.
- [20:14]
Firefighter or Investigator
Okay.
- [20:17]
Detective
On your house.
- [20:18]
Theresa Conley
Okay.
- [20:19]
Narrator
Teresa seems dumbfounded. She tells investigators she has no idea who started the fire inside their home.
- [20:28]
Theresa Conley
I don't know anything about the fire. All I know is that man was my life. And he will be the rest of my life, dead or alive.
- [20:41]
Narrator
Coming up, how a debilitating disease undermined a happy life.
- [20:48]
Child of Jim and Theresa
The fact that he felt that he could take care of his family was more than he could take.
- [20:54]
Narrator
And could a grieving wife be hiding her own secrets?
- [20:59]
Firefighter or Investigator
There were whispers that there was some infidelity going on, her seeing other men.
- [21:11]
Host
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- [23:31]
Narrator
A week has passed since the sudden death of Jim Conley after locating an accelerant inside the Conley residence. The case is officially labeled arson, leaving detectives questioning who would have motive to set the fire.
- [23:48]
Detective
When the fire marshal looked at this one, he said, yeah, this is an arson. Somebody poured the accelerant and set it up.
- [23:57]
Narrator
During the days that follow, investigators find that Jim's finances had been in decline after a recent diagnosis.
- [24:06]
Child of Jim and Theresa
My dad was diagnosed with Lyme disease. He received it from a tic either running in the woods or camping. We're not really exactly for sure where he got it at. His work days went from five days a week, sometimes six, to two or three, sometimes none.
- [24:24]
Narrator
And when Jim didn't work, he didn't get paid. Friends say he fell into a deep depression.
- [24:34]
Friend or Family Member
His business started dying down. People started going to other chiropractors that.
- [24:38]
Firefighter or Investigator
They could see they were close to the house going into foreclosure. It was very bleak for them.
- [24:48]
Child of Jim and Theresa
The fact that things are happening the way they were for my dad killed him inside. The fact that he felt that he couldn't take care of his family was more than he could take.
- [25:00]
Narrator
Was Jim so depressed that he took his own life? The theory gains momentum when a friend of Jim's contacts detectives.
- [25:14]
Firefighter or Investigator
There was an issue of a crude will that Jim supposedly wrote and sent to a friend. Now, it had no value as a will because it wasn't properly executed under Georgia law. I think had he really wanted it to be effective, he would have done it properly with counsel. But it did have some value potentially as to show his intent.
- [25:41]
Narrator
The handwritten will is dated May 2, less than two months before Jim's death.
- [25:48]
Firefighter or Investigator
It threw some fuel toward the fact that perhaps he knew he was going to die.
- [25:58]
Narrator
However, there's one stumbling block for investigators. Even if Jim was suicidal, self immolation is A rare and extreme act.
- [26:09]
Investigator
I've never seen anyone intentionally commit suicide by fire. That seems to be a real stretch. If you're going to commit suicide, there are a lot easier ways to do it.
- [26:26]
Narrator
When Jim's autopsy report is completed, the findings raise even more suspicion.
- [26:34]
Theresa's Co-worker
The mode of death is smoke inhalation. But toxicology results come back and there were antidepressants and sedatives in Jim's system. When we factor that in with where the burn was on his body, most significantly at the soles of his feet, that could be because he tried to stamp out the fire. These things don't quite add up to somebody who is going to kill themselves and going to do so by fire.
- [27:03]
Narrator
The coroner rules Jim's death a homicide. When detectives interview Jim and Teresa's co workers at the Wellness center, they uncover more secrets.
- [27:19]
Firefighter or Investigator
There were whispers that there was some infidelity going on, her seeing other men.
- [27:25]
Friend or Family Member
Everybody kind of knew her affairs had been going on for a while, but it got worse as time went on.
- [27:32]
Narrator
Co workers also report inappropriate emails between Teresa and the business former accountant.
- [27:41]
Theresa's Co-worker
Witnesses talked about times when Teresa and this individual would go into a massage room for somewhere between two and three hours, far longer than any massage clients were ever seen.
- [27:58]
Narrator
It's an important clue. Detectives wonder, did this love triangle turn violent?
- [28:06]
Investigator
When they interview the accountant, he basically says that he did become close to Theresa Conley, but he denied a sexual relationship. But he did admit that they had had some sort of romantic connection, and that's the reason he stopped coming over there to Dr. Connolly's office. Theresa Connolly denied having the affair as well.
- [28:34]
Narrator
The accountant claims he hasn't been in contact with Teresa in years and has no reason to want Jim dead. With no evidence that the accountant had any involvement in the crime and autopsy results indicating Jim could not have done this himself, investigators must determine who was the last person to leave the Conley home that morning.
- [29:01]
Investigator
During the course of an investigation, you consider all possibilities. I looked at Theresa Connelly and Robin Simmons. Since the timeline was pretty far off, I don't think they were free to ignore any discrepancies.
- [29:19]
Narrator
Investigators circle back to Robin Simmons and press her further about their conflicting timelines.
- [29:28]
Detective
Robin said she and the kids, they were in the driveway for 15, 20 minutes waiting on Theresa. She had gone back in to do they did not know what, but had gone back in again.
- [29:43]
Investigator
She claimed they left at a much later time than what Theresa Connolly had been saying. And she said Theresa was trying to convince her that they left at 8:15 and she wants Robin to say that as well to investigators.
- [29:59]
Narrator
Investigators ask Robin point blank, did you see the fire?
- [30:04]
Investigator
Robin Simmons never indicated that she saw any fire or smoke at the residence. Shortly after they left her residence, they went to Chick Fil a in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia.
- [30:21]
Narrator
Investigators head to the restaurant hoping to obtain video surveillance from the day of the fire.
- [30:28]
Firefighter or Investigator
The cameras at the Chick fil A in Fort Ogle Fort, which is less than 10 minutes away, showed them driving.
- [30:35]
Narrator
Through at 9:17am Investigators time the drive from the Conley residence multiple times, and not once does it take more than eight minutes.
- [30:48]
Firefighter or Investigator
She claims her leaving around 8:15, and then video surveillance says that she's there more than an hour later, around 9:20 or so.
- [30:58]
Investigator
As the officers kept investigating the timeline, they discovered Theresa would have been at the house about the time the fire had started.
- [31:10]
Narrator
Having punched a hole in Teresa's timeline, investigators obtain a warrant to search the home.
- [31:18]
Firefighter or Investigator
Fire investigators are really smart. They look for what isn't there. Personal photos, things that are irreplaceable.
- [31:29]
Investigator
They found out in the garage, a lot of the clothes for the kids had been put out there, so they weren't smoke damaged or fire damaged.
- [31:38]
Detective
She had taken stuff that arsonists take pictures of the children, stuff that you can't replace.
- [31:49]
Narrator
As investigators continue their search of the home, they find more incriminating evidence.
- [31:55]
Investigator
They found an insurance policy for a lot of money on Dr. Connolly's life. And there was also some divorce papers that apparently had never been filed that were found there in the residence.
- [32:08]
Friend or Family Member
He had papers drawn up several times for divorce and he was going to leave her.
- [32:14]
Firefighter or Investigator
If you have a fire that takes out the home and the husband, Theresa would benefit highly from Jim being gone and the house being in shambles.
- [32:25]
Narrator
Coming up, suddenly, Teresa's story starts to change.
- [32:30]
Theresa Conley
He told me to leave the house, and he asked me no more questions.
- [32:35]
Narrator
And devastating allegations come hurling Teresa's way.
- [32:40]
Investigator
Several months prior to the arson, and Theresa Conley had a miscarriage.
- [32:45]
Friend or Family Member
After she lost the baby, she got real depressed and started doing the drugs.
- [32:59]
Narrator
Ten days after the death of Jim Conley, Georgia authorities are homing in on one suspect, his wife, Teresa.
- [33:08]
Theresa's Co-worker
Theresa has presented them as a happy couple with no problems, no difficulties. But authorities have located documentation that they were in fact going to file for divorce.
- [33:20]
Narrator
Detectives widened the scope of their investigation, interviewing several former employees, starting with Bonnie White.
- [33:29]
Investigator
The detectives learned that several months prior to the arson, Theresa Conley had a miscarriage.
- [33:38]
Friend or Family Member
After Theresa had the miscarriage, she wasn't working for three or four months and she got real depressed and started doing the drugs.
- [33:48]
Investigator
According to people who worked at Dr. Connolly's office, she was using marijuana and methamphetamine.
- [34:00]
Narrator
According to Bonnie, it was around that time she noticed that Teresa was embezzling money.
- [34:08]
Friend or Family Member
I went to Jim and I said, I think Teresa's stealing from you. One month, she had wrote 16 checks to herself. He confronted her in front of me, and she said, no, those checks were voided. And I said, well, voided checks don't clear the bank. Here's the bank statement. They're highlighted.
- [34:33]
Narrator
Bonnie says she quit her job after that incident. While detectives find that Teresa was never charged with embezzlement, other past employees come forward with even more alarming allegations.
- [34:47]
Investigator
Teresa has told several witnesses that she has been putting lithium in her husband's coffee. She says this basically keeps them quiet and sedates them. Dr. Connolly himself has suspected that she's doing this and has told people that he thinks Theresa has been drugging him. So it seems pretty certain that this has been going on for several months.
- [35:13]
Narrator
Lithium can be used as a medical treatment in small amounts, but if not carefully administered, it's highly toxic for a.
- [35:23]
Theresa's Co-worker
Person who has been given higher than normal doses over a cumulative period of time. Lithium toxicity can be incredibly damaging to the internal organ functioning of a human being. Authorities now start to ask the question, did she intend to kill him? Maybe she thought if she slowly poisoned him and is system and his health slowly declined, maybe he would eventually just die and people would assume it was lyme disease.
- [35:54]
Narrator
On June 9, investigators bring Teresa in again and demand the truth. Much to their surprise, she agrees to a lie detector test.
- [36:06]
Detective
I explained it. Nobody can make her take a polygraph. And that if she tells me the truth, that she'll pass the polygraph. If she does not, she will absolutely fail the polygraph.
- [36:16]
Theresa Conley
I'm not gonna lie, okay?
- [36:21]
Firefighter or Investigator
In Georgia, polygraphs are inadmissible unless you sign a stipulation first that says it will be admissible, and they convinced her to do that.
- [36:38]
Detective
Regarding the fire at your residence, do you intend to answer truthfully each question about that?
- [36:43]
Theresa Conley
Yes.
- [36:44]
Detective
Did you start that fire?
- [36:46]
Theresa Conley
No. I know I did not start that fire. I was gone.
- [36:53]
Narrator
After administering the exam, Detective Scroggin studies the results.
- [36:59]
Detective
Like I told you before, I'm just a real direct guy. Been doing this for a long, long time.
- [37:05]
Theresa Conley
I don't want you to be the other way.
- [37:06]
Detective
Well, big with this test. Polygraph chart scoring is a mathematical kind of thing. The computer indicated her level of deception was in excess of 100%. People come in thinking, I can beat this test. I can go in here and convince them I didn't do anything wrong. And I'll tell you, you can't.
- [37:32]
Narrator
And then. Then Teresa drops a bombshell.
- [37:36]
Theresa Conley
He told me he wanted to die, and he told me to leave the house. And he said, don't ask me no more questions. And I said, baby, why? Just tell me why? He said, I just want you to know that I love you and I love folks.
- [37:58]
Detective
And why. Why have you not shared that little bit of information with the investigators up until now?
- [38:03]
Theresa Conley
Because I didn't want them to think.
- [38:05]
Narrator
That.
- [38:08]
Theresa Conley
I would send John take the blame before I let them know he started this.
- [38:15]
Detective
Almost immediately, within the first 60, 90 seconds, she makes her first admission.
- [38:27]
Narrator
Detective Scroggins brings in the two lead investigators, who reveal another shocking piece of information.
- [38:35]
Investigator
The detectives at the Catus County Sheriff's Office had sent out subpoenas for the telephone records of Teresa Connolly's cell phone.
- [38:45]
Detective
I'm just curious. Somebody calls you and says, hey, I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but your house burning down and your husband's dead, and your first call is to whom?
- [38:59]
Theresa Conley
I don't think I made a call. I don't know.
- [39:01]
Detective
You didn't call Mama. You didn't call his mama. You called your insurance agent. Does that not strike you as a bit strange?
- [39:11]
Narrator
The accusation is clear.
- [39:14]
Friend or Family Member
I know.
- [39:15]
Theresa Conley
Without a shadow of a doubt. I know he did it. I can't prove he done it, but I can prove. I can't prove I didn't do it. But I know I didn't start it. I didn't know it was gonna happen. He just told me, go and don't ask me any questions.
- [39:33]
Investigator
I don't believe anything he told us.
- [39:36]
Theresa Conley
I've come to grips with that guy, and I've come to grips with. I probably need to go get an attorney.
- [39:42]
Narrator
Investigators arrest Theresa and charge her with. With malice murder and first degree arson.
- [39:54]
Child of Jim and Theresa
I'll never forget this day. She reaches up to me. She's got her handcuffs on, so she puts them around my neck, and she's just bawling, you know, she's just like, it's okay, baby. It's okay. Everything's gonna be okay. You know, you've gotta be strong for your little sister. We're gonna get through this. You know, we're the colonies, remember? We can handle anything. And then they walked her back and put me and my sister both in interrogation rooms.
- [40:18]
Firefighter or Investigator
Did your mom take some clothes out.
- [40:19]
Theresa Conley
Of the House for you before the fire. No, no, no. Not anything. Not anything.
- [40:26]
Narrator
Caleb is decidedly closed mouthed.
- [40:30]
Theresa's Co-worker
Caleb's traumatized, he's grieving, he's clinging to the parent that he knows and loves. And initially he gives them nothing.
- [40:42]
Narrator
Coming up, a stunning admission.
- [40:46]
Theresa Conley
What did you say? No, no, this is. I don't think they have so far.
- [40:50]
Child of Jim and Theresa
She told me not to worry about it and she said okay. So we just kept driving.
- [41:04]
Narrator
6 year old Allison and 11 year old Caleb Conley are placed in the care of Georgia's Children and family services on July 9, 2007, following the arrest of their mother, Teresa. On July 16, investigators obtain permission to speak to Caleb again, this time with the help of an expert.
- [41:28]
Investigator
Forensic examiners at the Children's Advocacy center are specially trained in how to interview children and know how to establish that rapport and to make the child comfortable.
- [41:43]
Theresa Conley
Take me back to the morning. That morning we woke up, my mom was getting ready. My dad came out to get some water, go make up some toast. And we get stuff on the computer. And then what happened? Mom was supposed to get in the car. It's okay. She went and back. She went back inside. I don't know why she came back outside. We went. I was looking at the fence and the bugs behind it.
- [42:08]
Friend or Family Member
Okay, so did you say something to her?
- [42:11]
Theresa Conley
Yeah.
- [42:12]
Friend or Family Member
What did you say?
- [42:12]
Theresa Conley
She said. She said, mama, this is, I think the house so far. She. No, that's just a bunch of papers.
- [42:23]
Child of Jim and Theresa
We would burn stuff every day out in the yard. My mom was big on burning boxes. My mom would go around and pile them all up and burn them. She told me not to worry about it and she said okay. So we just kept driving.
- [42:36]
Theresa Conley
Did you see the papers burning? No, but I seen the smoke.
- [42:40]
Friend or Family Member
You saw the smoke and told your mom? Did Robin see that too?
- [42:46]
Theresa Conley
I don't know. She didn't say anything though.
- [42:51]
Investigator
Of course. Made absolutely no sense that she would have chosen that time to burn some papers that early in the morning when you're getting ready to go on a trip out of town.
- [43:02]
Theresa's Co-worker
By him being satisfied by his mother's explanation that they were burning trash. That allows Caleb to preserve his affection for his mom.
- [43:15]
Narrator
For investigators, it the final piece of the puzzle. They believe they know what happened on June 29, 2007.
- [43:25]
Investigator
I think Theresa had probably planned this out for some time. They were in financial straits. If she killed her husband, she would get insurance money for the loss of her husband. She wouldn't have to worry about the dangers of a divorce where she might possibly lose her Kids because she was having affairs and using drugs herself. She gets Jim up that morning. She knows she's going to be leaving to establish her alibi. She drugs him through the coffee. He ends up going back to bed. She then sets the fire immediately before she goes out. Then they drive off with the house burning behind them. All indications were that he had enough in him, even under the sedation, to move about a little bit. So he ended up getting off the bed. But that was as far as he was able to make it when he died from the smoke inhalation.
- [44:42]
Narrator
With the evidence stacked against her, Teresa's defense team does all they can to delay her day in court.
- [44:51]
Firefighter or Investigator
The state put together what I felt was an almost insurmountable circumstantial evidence case. I advised her that it was very bleak, but that she had the right to a trial. And that's what every defendant has. They were supposed to go to trial on Monday and the Friday before. I get this call and, hey, we've got a plea deal.
- [45:23]
Narrator
In lieu of malice murder, Teresa agrees to plead guilty to felony murder and first and second degree arson.
- [45:33]
Investigator
Theresa Connolly ended up claiming in her plea of guilty that she was involved in setting the fire that ultimately killed her husband. Her husband decided that he would save the family by burning the residence down and then getting the insurance money, and he accidentally killed himself.
- [45:54]
Firefighter or Investigator
In doing this, she admitted taking instructions from Jim to help set the fire. Essentially, she denied and still denies to this day killing Jim with any intent.
- [46:12]
Theresa's Co-worker
When we start to ask the question about, did she intend to kill him, the fact that she made the decision to systematically and slowly poison him, it seems only reasonable that her primary focus in this situation and goal was to end Jim's life.
- [46:27]
Narrator
In December of 2010, Teresa is sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 30 years.
- [46:41]
Child of Jim and Theresa
I lost both my parents. I was just 11 years old. My dad loved helping people. He just. He just loved putting a smile on someone else's faces. And I think that's how most people remember my father. And I think that's how anybody should want to be remembered.
- [47:00]
Host
Theresa Lynn Conley is currently housed at the Pulaski State Prison in Hawkinsville, Georgia. Her first opportunity for parole will be in 2041. She will be 67 years old.
- [47:21]
Investigator
It takes one guy out there to say, who's that? Kyle, who thinks he can just get on a microphone on a podcast and start publicizing.
- [47:30]
Narrator
From iHeart podcasts and Tenderfoot TV comes a new true crime podcast, Crook County. I got recruited into the mob when I was 17 years old.
- [47:40]
Theresa Conley
Meet Kenny, an enforcer for the legendary Chicago outfit.
- [47:45]
Narrator
And that was my mission, to snuff.
- [47:47]
Firefighter or Investigator
The life out of this guy. He lived a secret double life as.
- [47:51]
Narrator
A firefighter paramedic for the Chicago Fire Department.
- [47:53]
Child of Jim and Theresa
I had a wife and I had two children. Nobody knew anything.
- [47:56]
Theresa Conley
People are dying. Is he doing this every night? Torn between two worlds.
- [48:01]
Firefighter or Investigator
I'm covering up murders that these cops are doing. He was a freaking crazy man.
- [48:05]
Theresa Conley
We don't know who he is. Is really he is.
- [48:09]
Firefighter or Investigator
My father and I had no idea.
- [48:11]
Theresa Conley
About any of this until now. Welcome to Crook County.
- [48:15]
Firefighter or Investigator
Available now listen for free on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.