Snapped: Women Who Murder - Claudia Hoerig

Episode Date: February 5, 2023

After an Air Force pilot is found shot to death in his Ohio home, authorities embark on an international manhunt that spans over a decade to bring the fugitive to justice.Season 30, Episode 08Originally aired: November 28, 2021Watch full episodes of Snapped for FREE on the Oxygen app: https://oxygentv.app.link/WatchSnappedPodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hi, I'm Lindsey Graham, the host of Wonder East Podcast American Scandal. Our newest series looks at the story of OxyContin, a popular painkiller that helps spur an epidemic of addiction and drug abuse, in which prompted a broad campaign to hold the pharmaceutical industry accountable. Listen to American Scandal on Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. He was a high-flying Air Force Reserve pilot dedicated to his job and beloved by his fellow servicemen. He flew logistical missions and rescue missions.

He flew in combat zones. However, unexpectedly the true danger for this wartime pilot was not overseas, but in his own home. He was shot twice in the back, and once in the head, at close range. It was clear that this person, this killer, wanted him dead. As the murder investigation takes off, a house full of twisted secrets is revealed behind closed doors.

It's the first time in my 25-plus-year career that I had ever seen a crime scene boogie tramp. It was staged in such a way that had somebody open to the closet door, not carefully, they would have been shot. There was just something going on in that house that was getting worse and worse. And detectives will uncover how far someone is willing to go to break free. I want to live this way. Oh my God.

Those are the things I needed to make. She knew this relationship was over, and it's almost like she wanted it to end on her terms. March 15, 2007, Trumble County, Ohio. Airmen Gary Dodge arrives at the Youngstown Air Force Reserve Station, looking forward to connecting with fellow pilot 44-year-old Carl Herring before a busy day of work. There's only one problem. Carl is nowhere to be found. It was not common for Carl to miss work.

So Gary Dodge placed a call to 911 to check the welfare of his friend, Carl Herring. The responding officer finds one vehicle in Carl's driveway, but a knock on the door goes unanswered. They tried to get in because there was no answer. They ended up contacting his father. I think that gave the friends and family grave concern right from the beginning.

His father arrived and was able to let them into the home, and that's when they made the discovery. Police discovered Carl's body at the bottom of the steps near the front door, covered in a comforter, and he was deceased. He was the obvious victim of a homicide with gunshot wounds. At that point, the officers secured the scene.

Made the calls to the Detective Bureau of the prosecutor's office and the coroner's office. Outside, Carl's father learns the shocking fate of his son. For a parent to be there when a child's body is discovered. As you can imagine, it was just heartbreaking. They did not want the father to come into the home to see that. Carl Herring entered the world on Christmas Eve, 1963. The second of three sons, Carl enjoyed an idyllic childhood

in Newton Falls, Ohio. It was just a really nice middle America place to grow up in. His mother and father both very sweet, honorable, hardworking people. Just wonderful. His father taught him the trades and woodworking, and Carl was a fantastic woodworker and was also good with automobiles and anything mechanical

was definitely a strong area for Carl. After graduating high school in 1982, Carl enlisted in the military. It was during Carl's early years in the military that he met his first wife, Rhonda Sharp. I believe they met at an army formal ball. Carl ended up taking the sister of one of his closest friends, and that sister was Rhonda,

and they ended up eventually getting married. Over the next decade, Carl and Rhonda raised two children together. But the romance faded and the couple divorced in 1998. The split was amicable, and Carl remained a dedicated father. He loved both of his children, Eva and Brent, very, very much, and talked about them, and was very supportive of both of them. Following the end of his active service career, Carl landed a well-paying job as a pilot

for Southwest Airlines. He also joined the Air Force Reserves, where he eventually rose to the rank of major. He flew logistical missions and rescue missions. He flew in combat zones. This was a guy that dedicated his life to his community, his country, his family. It was on a flight abroad where Carl met the woman his life to his community, his country, his family.

It was on a flight abroad where Carl met the woman he considered to be the love of his life. Carl was on a routine mission to Peru, and while he was there, he met a young Peruvian girl named Carla, and they kept in touch and they started writing letters, and eventually she came to visit him, and they kept in touch, and they started writing letters, and eventually she came to visit him, and they fell in love. For the next two years, the couple lived together in a small town outside of Youngstown, Ohio.

Carl was absolutely head over heels in love with Carla, just adored her to no end. After some time things started to get a little bit complicated. Carla wanted to get married and wanted to have children. And Carla wasn't sure that he wanted to have any more kids, so he decided to break up with Carla. It didn't take Carl very long, maybe six months or so, to realize that he had made a terrible, terrible mistake.

But unfortunately, Carla decided not to come back. She had moved on. In April of 2005, Cupid struck again when Carl met 40-year-old Claudia Sobril on a dating website. Friends of Carl's instantly noticed how closely Claudia resembled Carla. He told me all about this girl from New York City

and that he really liked her. But one of my first impressions when I met Claudia was that she reminded me so much of Carla. Born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Claudia immigrated to the United States from Brazil in the mid-1980s. Claudia came to the United States when she was fairly young, maybe early 20s. She went to New York City. She was an accountant, and so that's how she made a living in New York City.

Claudia's upbringing in Brazil was difficult, and she rarely discussed her past with friends. By 1999, 35-year-old Claudia was ready to leave life in Brazil behind her and put down permanent roots in America. Although she was born in Brazil, she had become a naturalized U.S. citizen. With a solid career in the Big Apple, Claudia found herself longing for a romantic connection. In 2005, she found her match online with Carl Herreg. So from there things went amazingly fast in the relationship, just almost mind-bogglingly fast.

I don't think it was even two to three weeks or so later that he was talking about possibly marrying her. Though Claudia remained something of a mystery to friends, Carl saw nothing but bright skies on the horizon. Six weeks after they met, Carl proposed to Claudia. When Carl first got engaged to Claudia, there is no doubt that I tried to talk him out of it. I said, why?

There's just no reason to move this fast. You don't even know where you haven't even known her that long. Why get married? And his response was, I can't lose this one. was, I can't lose this one. In June of 2005, Carl and Claudia married in Las Vegas. After the ceremony, the couple set up their home on a quiet, treeline street in Carl's hometown

of Newton Falls, Ohio. It's where his mom and dad were. It's near where his brothers were. He found a really nice house and a really nice neighborhood that he absolutely loved. This was a whirlwind romance for Carl Herrigan and Claudia. All of his friends are worried that he'd only known her for two months, and here he was married.

Those are all pretty scary signs of here his friends. And on March 15, 2007, less than two years after they exchanged idios, Carl is found shot to death inside his home. When authorities learn Carl shares the home with Claudia, questions immediately surface since Carl's wife is nowhere inside. And so, at that time, they're wondering what is going on here is Claudia a victim has something happen to her.

As the search begins for Claudia Herig, detectives arrive on scene and try to piece together what happened. They observed Carl's body at the bottom of the steps, and it appeared he had been there at least for several days. Carl had been shot twice in the back and once in the head. Detectives next make their way into the master bedroom. But when they open the closet door, investigators find themselves staring down the barrel of a gun, literally.

Notice the first time in my 25-plus year career that I had ever seen a crime scene boogie trapped. Coming up, a deadly contraption raises investigators suspicions. It was something none of us had seen before. And police uncover evidence of a rocky marriage. He didn't have very many good things to say about Claudia at all. They had lots of trouble at home. at home. March 15, 2007. After finding the body of 44-year-old Carl Herrick in his Newton Falls, Ohio home, police

are unpacking the crime scene when they make a disturbing discovery in the master bedroom closet. When that closet door was opened, what you saw was the two-by-four going across the frame, and then a gun suspended in mid-air with just the barrel sticking through the hole that had been poured out in that two-by-four. It was a firearm that was staged in such a way that had somebody open to the closet door

not carefully, and the booby trap would have worked properly, that that person who opened to that door most likely law enforcement would have been shot. It was something none of us had seen before. If they're willing to leave a booby trap that could kill an unknown person who just opens a closet door, what are they going to do when they're confronted by law enforcement? Thankfully, the device is quickly and safely disassembled. Once they find this 357 magnum and this booby trap set up,

they immediately question whether this could be the actual murder weapon in this case. So they take it as evidence and they send it to the state's crime lab to investigate, to try and see if it matches the bullets that Carl was shot with. Detectives head back downstairs to survey Carl's body and gather more evidence. It was the obvious victim of a homicide with gunshot wounds

that his body was covered with some type of a sheet. When you find a body that's covered up, that often means that the person who committed that homicide had some type of a relationship with the victim and didn't want to view the body. Just didn't want to have to look at it. In addition to the close-range shot that ended Carl's life, four more bullets were fired from a distance in his direction.

Two landed in a wall, the other two struck Carl in the back and knack. From what police could tell us that this appeared to be a surprise attack on Carl, the fact that he was sitting at the bottom of the stairs. His shoes untied, a water bottle there. It appeared as if he was getting ready to go somewhere, which was most likely work at that time.

When detectives search the rest of the home, one possible motive for the murder is soon ruled out. There was not signs that the house had been burglarized. The house was not ransacked or anything of that nature. With the exception of Carl's body being covered in a comforter at the bottom of the steps, the house was in good order. As the crime scene's search continues, detectives step outside and examine Carl's car

in the driveway with a hastily packed suitcase in the back seat. Looking into that vehicle, they could see some clothes in a bag, his cell phone. Those are also things that they didn't think he would just leave, basically out in the open like that. That would indicate to me that somebody was leaving. Somebody was either in fear for their safety

or they were getting ready to get out of there and something bad happened. That would raise red flags right away. was either in fear for their safety or they were getting ready to get out of there and something bad happened. That would raise red flags right away. Law enforcement also notices that both Claudia and her BMW are nowhere to be found. The father and family members who are all responding to the scene immediately told the detectives that her vehicle and her were both missing from the residents. None of the neighbors really knew anything about what happened.

They didn't seem to hear anything or see anything odd, but one man did say that on the 12th he saw the BMW peel out of the driveway. The neighbors timeline would seem to line up with the approximate date of Carl's death, which means Carl's killer could have a three-day head start. When his person is married and they are found to cease in their home, especially alone, the first thought for concern is, where is the spouse? Is the spouse alive? Has the spouse been kidnapped or hurt, or are they a suspect?

So police are doing everything they can to find this BMW that the couple owned. They put out the beyond the lookout for Bolo Alert to authorities trying to find the vehicle. You see the totality of the crime scene, the number one, the area that is not known for violent crime. You then see that the occupant appeared to have been packing their vehicle to leave.

The residents is locked, the bodies covered. Somebody took the time to place this booby trap in a closet. All of that really indicates and leads to the fact that this is most likely a domestic incident. With a bolo out for the BMW and Carl's current wife, investigators look into the health of his relationship with his ex-wife, Ronda. Ed Herrick, who was Carl's father, told police that there was no possibility that it was his ex-wife. They were extremely close, and she also lived in North Carolina. A phone call to Ronda at her home in North Carolina

supports Ed's assertion that she and Carl were on good terms. In fact, she tells detectives she had just seen her ex-husband a few days before his murder. They warned that he had been in North Carolina visiting his ex-wife and his children and had just gotten back to Newton Falls. With his ex-wife ruled out as a suspect, investigators dive deeper into the dynamic

between Carl and Claudia. Carl did share that he was having difficulty in the marriage and was in the middle of a difficult time. Didn't talk much about it, but you could see he was troubled by it. He didn't have very many it, but you could see he was troubled by it. He didn't have very many good things to say about Claudia at all. Claudia was complaining that Carl was comparing Claudia to other girls at times,

like specifically his ex-Carla. They had lots of trouble at home. Carl's family and friends were concerned, because obviously now Carl's body is found shot, and Claudia is nowhere to be found. So the first goal is to figure out where Claudia is. Is she responsible for this? And where did she go?

Unable to contact Claudia, detectives consider the possibility that she's on the run and quickly bring in U.S. marshals to track her down. The primary role of the U.S. marshals is to find the fugitive, find the person who committed this crime so they can be brought back to justice. Coming up, investigators learn the true depth of the discord in the Herring household. I want to lift this way. This is the black hole of loving situations. And a manhunt becomes an international incident.

And then, at that point, everything just stopped. And it turned into a legal and political issue. Hey, listener, it is Jason Bateman. We've been fortunate to attract so many a list guests to our Smart List podcast, but we've never put together a lineup quite like this. I'm talking about Will Ferro, Conan O'Brien, Kevin Hart, Mark Cuban, Jimmy Kimmel, Matt Damon, and more available four weeks early and ad free on Wondery Plus.

If you've seen our docu series, smartless on the road, you know we had an incredible time on our tour where we recorded 10 amazing interviews. Sean. This is Sean Heist. Not only are these some of the best episodes that we've ever recorded, but the atmosphere with the live crowd is unlike anything we've released before. It was incredible to engage with an audience of thousands of our biggest fans as we traveled all over the country from Brooklyn to Los Angeles. You can listen to these episodes four weeks early and add free with 1-3 plus, find 1-3 plus

in the 1-3 app or on Apple Podcasts. And this is Will Arnett, I'm telling you, you really should listen. Do it, do it, do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it. Do it.

Do it. The investigation into the murder of 44-year-old Carl Herring is quickly pointing in the direction of his Brazilian-born wife of two years, 42-year-old Claudia. When the detectives took the information from friends and family, saying he was involved in a tumultuous relationship with his wife, and they said right away if something happened to him,

they felt she was responsible. So based on that information, she quickly became a person of interest and a suspect in his death. According to friends and family, the couple's marital problems began shortly after they exchanged boughs. After they came back from Las Vegas, she went back to Brooklyn where all her things were, and of course, he went to his house in Newton Falls. And he had a terrible time getting her to agree to come to Newton Falls. I remember after two or three weeks, I think he had to say, look, you're my wife and you have to come.

But it seems their problems ran much deeper than deciding where to call home. Within weeks or possibly a month or two of them getting married, Carl already was complaining. They had trouble in just about every area that you can imagine. They would try to make it work for a while, kind of went back and forth and back and forth, which was probably very, very hard on both of them.

Friendsay, Carl's infatuation with his ex Carla, caused him to jump too quickly into marriage with Claudia. In my opinion, I think what happened was after he got married and she came back to Newton Falls, Carl started to realize that she wasn't Carla. She was nothing like Carla. All she did was look like Carla. She did not have the same personality at all.

Apparently, the pressure to fill Carla's shoes was having a noticeable effect on Claudia. The family was describing her as having a ratic behavior that she seemed like she was unstable. During their search of the Herring Home, police find a recording on a computer of a family meeting from February 5, 2007. It's clear that Claudia called the surprise meeting

to address the tension in her marriage. And while Carl and his parents were present, no one knew Claudia recorded the entire exchange. Well, I I know you. First of all, this kind of theatrical drama sets a problem. I don't want to live this way. You're holding a stone on me right now. I'm done with that.

I don't want to sit here and talk about business from a people. It's not long before Karl's former flame, Carla, becomes the focus of the discussion. If you don't have a parent in your call, I think right there, if you're trying to say things about her that aren't true, you don't know her. She was just a good person who was easy to deal with. And you were the hardest person to deal with, I have ever met, but I'll just leave it at that. You don't understand you.

Even less than I was trying to talk to you and I said, what is it that you want? And then you thought about the companionship. But you knew one that was not keeping me company. You knew one that was never home. I'm alone. Well, I'll tell you, there's two sides to every story. And I'm not even going to tell my side, because I'm on small stores.

You know what I've told other people, and saying this kind of stuff. Through the fiery dispute, it becomes clear to investigators that the marriage was nearing its end. You make it miserable every time I say, well, we're done. You say, no, no, let's make it work. If this is the way it has to be, I'm gonna tell you something right here and now. I will do the everything the best that I can to take care of you, but I see us done.

I will have to provide and pay and take care of every problem and make things as painless as I can. But this little thing here, pretty much feels the deal. If you don't want to deal with me, and you want to involve other people, you do the different that I do. This is what I call a loving situation.

Carl Herrick's family was under the understanding that he was going to leave Claudia. In fact, he had already found another place that he was planning to leave Claudia. In fact, he had already found another place that he was planning to move into. After hearing how hostile Carl and Claudia's marriage had become, authorities cracked down on locating Claudia. Luckily, on March 16th, they get their next lead. We learned that Claudia's BMW was located in a parking area at the Pittsburgh International

Airport. Obviously, we were excited that the car was found, but now the next problem that is presented to us is where did she go, did she board a plane? Detective suspicions are heightened when they comb over the couple's financial records and discover a major red flag. They find out that Claudia Herrick cleaned out a bank account and basically dumped all of her money into an account in Brazil. The amount of money was nearly $10,000 in US currency.

To verify that it was actually Claudia who authorized the transaction, they check the bank surveillance footage and clear as day on March 12, three days before Carl was found dead, Claudia is caught on camera. This was right around the same time that the homicide obviously occurred. So that led investigators to believe that, you know, this was something that was premeditated. This was planned. She had this money withdrawn before the homicide occurred.

The thought going through our head is she's wiring money down to Brazil, so she will have money when she gets there. And sure would lead one to believe that she was heading back to her home country. And when investigators scrutinized Claudia's cell records, they determined that Claudia's travel plans were highly coordinated. First, leaving her car in Pittsburgh, and then flying to LaGuardia Airport in New York. We were then able to see that she traveled from LaGuardia

across town to JFK Airport, where her phone was again turned off. And her last known location was at JFK. So the next part of that then becomes now we got to start tracking flying information and her ticket information to determine where she may possibly be so we can locate her. We discovered that she had actually boarded that flight from JFK to Brazil.

We had the ticket. We knew she was on that plane. Then that's when the next stage of the investigation you know, really kicked off. Back in Trumble County, a forensic analysis is conducted on the handgun found inside the Herrig's closet, and it's determined to be the weapon used to kill Carl. And what's more, the gun was purchased by Claudia. Police learned that it, in fact, was the murder weapon, and that it was purchased by Claudia

here at Carl's wife just two days before the murder. We talked to the employees at the indoor gun range. They remembered Claudia being there, and I talked to the subject who sold her the weapon. Claudia had laser sight grips installed on that weapon when she bought it. That way, when you hold the gun, the laser comes on, and shows you where the bullet's going to hit.

Claudia bought ammunition and actually practiced shooting that weapon with the laser grips on it. With proof that Claudia purchased the same weapon used to kill Carl on April 12, 2007, authorities file murder charges against her. But with their prime suspect more than 4,500 miles away in Brazil, bringing her home to face justice will not be easy.

Brazil was putting up a fight regarding the extradition. The Brazilian Constitution said, if they are a Brazilian citizen, they're not going to extradite back to our country. There was never ever a Brazilian citizen extradited back to the United States of America in our history. And then, at that point, everything just, you know, the law enforcement side of things really just stopped. And it turned into a legal and political issue.

and it turned into a legal and political issue. Coming up, as the decade-long site to bring Claudia to justice continues, it's Claudia who finally taps out. The two of us are sitting there and she says, you know, a wife doesn't kill her husband for no reason. for no reason. On April 12, 2007, Ohio authorities obtained an arrest warrant for Claudia Herrig for the murder of her husband, Carl. But now that she's fled to her home country of Brazil, extra-diting her back to the

states poses a challenge to U.S. marshals. but now that she's fled to her home country of Brazil, extraditing her back to the States poses a challenge to US marshals. We quickly learned that the Brazilian constitution does not allow for the extradition of their citizens to foreign countries. And because Claudia had been born in Brazil, they were considering her still a citizen of their country, so the extradition process did not even start.

But she took an oath of citizenship to the United States. And in that oath of citizenship, it clearly states that you renounce your citizenship in any other country when you become a U.S. citizen. She commits a murder here in the United States, flees to her home country of Brazil, and Brazil tells us they're not giving her back to us. So that's very frustrating. She needs to face charges for this. No one expected this battle between the courts and a battle between two countries. For nine years, US authorities look for a way to cut through international red tape and find justice for Carl Herring.

As for Claudia, life in Brazil was treating her all too well. Throughout this entire process after she was initially located, the US Marshals International Investigators, with the assistance of our partners down in Brazil, we're keeping, I don't say constant tabs, but random tabs on Claudia. We were making sure we knew where she lived, we were keeping an eye on her,

we find out she bought a house, she started her own business. She actually got remarried. These were all things that, you know, smacking the face to the victim, to the family, and really, really frustrating to the detectives and the marshals involved in the case. After nearly 10 years of appeals

to officials in three different U.S. presidential administrations, in April of 2016, the fight to bring Claudia back finally pays off. One of the avenues that was pursued vigorously was the fact that because she became a United State citizen, that means she had to renounce her citizenship in Brazil, and she shouldn't have those protections of being a Brazilian citizen. She tried to use this loophole as a way to get away with murder. And that little nuance, the way I understand it,

went all the way to the Supreme Court of Brazil, where she lost by one vote. So the Brazilian federal police arrest her and then begins the next legal process, which is the formal order of extradition ordering her removed to the country. At that point, I was able to work with my headquarters and get a private plane.

And I flew three of my deputy US marshals and FBI agent, a State Department agent, over there to Brazil to pick her up. We're at the airport police station and we were told she was in the next room over. It was kind of a surreal moment. We had spent, you know, over a decade trying to find her, and then trying to get her brought back to justice in the US. But perhaps no one is more surprised than Claudia herself. Myself and the State Department agent entered the room.

We identified ourselves in English and asked if she understood us, and you could see the look on her face. I mean, she went from, you know, kind of having a normal day. You could see that look come over her face when she realized who we were and where she was going.

After an eight-hour flight, Claudia arrives back in Ohio and is escorted to the police station for an interview. During the car ride, she makes a shocking statement to the US marshals. The two of us are sitting there and she says, you know, a wife doesn't kill her husband for no reason. Claudia's bombshell confession leads investigators straight to an interrogation room to see what

else she'll share. And her list of grievances against Carl starts with his regret over his lost love, Carla. It was crazy. And I looked like her. That's why he knew me. She began talking, trying to describe an abusive relationship. Not physically abusive, but what she described is emotionally and sexually abusive. Oh my God. Those are the things that did to me. What's the all-web stuff?

And you make me walk around the house on high heels, all the time. According to Claudia, the breaking point in the marriage came down to the fact that Claudia wanted children and Carl did not. After suffering from two miscarriages, Claudia became suicidal. I was hurting again and I became very depressed.

And so then I tried to kill myself, which made me feel so. On March 9, 2007, just three days before the murder, Claudia claims she took a pregnancy test and it came back positive. The next day, Claudia made a surprising purchase. I don't know, I was pregnant. I got very nervous, but so I became the person. I know I knew it was my concept of pregnancy. So I have a plan.

It doesn't want to accept the spragons. I'm going to kill myself. To show how serious she was about her intentions, Claudia claims that when she told Carl she was pregnant, she held the newly purchased 357 to her head. He used to use it to me. I thought he would have some emotion in his face. And no emotion in his face at all. Nothing. And then he went, the gun in my arm,

at the set, no, and my neck at the same time. And then then, in the danger to me, and I felt, and my neck at the same time. And then, and then, and just doing it. And I felt, and I felt, I just stayed there. And it said, just do me a favor. Let me leave it, leave the room and go to the basement to do that because you're gonna squash my paintings.

You're gonna squash blood all over my paintings and Elvary and Green. He had said that, I would be that beautiful. She said that those statements infuriated her so bad that when he turned his back that instead of killing herself, she shot him. I remember very clearly the first one. I remember the first one. And then I know that I ain't shopping too much time.

For detectives, Claudia's confession appears to be the damning final piece of evidence. Less certain is whether a jury will interpret her admission the same way. Getting her back here and having her sitting in the county jail isn't the final step. There's still a trial. This thing's not over till the trial's over. Coming up, Claudia makes her case to the jury. The one thing that everyone wanted to see was whether or not Claudia Herrick would take the stand.

And when she did, everyone wanted a front row seat. I feel desperate. I couldn't handle this anymore. I couldn't handle this anymore. I couldn't handle this anymore. January 24, 2019. After more than a decade on the run, Claudia Herrig is led into an Ohio courtroom to stand trial for the murder of her husband Carl.

We'll commit a deteriorated murder of your husband with a vast flooding and preparation as demonstrated by your actions in the days leading up to the murder. Your actions clearly demonstrated prior to calculation and design. Claudia's defense team is now in the days leading up to the murder. Your actions clearly demonstrated prior calculation in design. Claudia's defense team acknowledges that she fired the shots that killed Carl, but they

insist it was provoked by abuse suffered at the hands of her spouse. Her defense was basically she had suffered so much emotional abuse and sexual abuse that she wasn't responsible for her actions or that her actions were justified. And in an attempt to sway the jury on the provocative allegations, Claudia makes a stunning move. During this trial, the one thing that everyone wanted to see was whether or not Claudia Herrick would take the stand. And when she did, everyone wanted a front row seat.

The courtroom was packed. On the stand, Claudia repeats the same story she told investigators following her extradition. In fact, Claudia tells the court that the booby trap found inside her bedroom closet was actually designed to harm her. She said she researched suicide and she said when some people try to commit suicide, they hesitate at the last second, move the barrel of the gun, and then they don't kill themselves and they survive.

And she didn't want that to happen. So that's why she built that thinking that it would keep the weapon in place. And when she pulled the trigger, she would accomplish her goal of killing herself. The prosecution is quick to point out one glaring hole in Claudia's story. The lack of evidence she has to support her allegations. We did not hear any information that would lead us to believe that Carl acted in a way that Claudia said he did. There were things that just did not add up to his ex-wife, to his brother, to his parents. Knowing the man that he was, they felt that everything she was saying was totally going against

everything that Carl was. Frankly, I've forgotten most of that nonsense that she brought up. It was just ridiculous. She had made some comments about being pregnant on several occasions and having miscarriages. She was not able to provide doctors, hospitals. She couldn't provide any information whatsoever to support those claims.

Nor did Claudia ever give birth to another child after Carl's death, suggesting her claims of a positive pregnancy test were false. The prosecution was able to prove that this crime had been planned by Claudia, mostly because of the purchase of the firearm, a a few days in advance of coral shooting, the laser grips that were installed on that weapon. Obviously, if you're gonna kill yourself, you don't need a laser sight to accomplish that goal. She gets the first piece out of him

that she bought two laser weapons, but she had the laser sight on him and practiced for an hour or two days ago. He's packed and ready to leave. He was preparing to leave to avoid confrontation. She wasn't going to let that happen. She knew he was getting ready to leave and if she couldn't convince him to stay,

then she was going to kill him. I think that was something that she had already decided in her mind that if he tried to leave, I have to kill him and I'm going back home to Brazil. She knew this relationship was over, and it's almost like she wanted it to end on her terms. On January 24, 2019, after less than four hours of deliberation, the jury's verdict is announced.

We the jury, in this case, Duleen Panelden's Werner firm, Prime the defendant, Claudia C. Eric Guilty, a vagrated murder, as she stands charged in the first county indictment. On February 8, 2019, Claudia Herrick is sentenced to life in prison. Nearly 12 years since the crime occurred,

Carl's wife is finally held accountable for her actions. Carl, we got justice for you, and I'm hoping that you have found peace and that your family has found peace as well. It ended way, way too soon for Carl, and I'm sure if he were here, he would tell me, hey, I didn't get to live as long as you, you know, enjoy it, buddy.

Enjoy it as best you can, because you never know when it's all gonna end. Claudia is serving her sentence at the Dayton Correctional Institution in Ohio. She will be eligible for parole in April of 2044. In securing her extradition from Brazil to the United States, the two countries agreed she would not receive the death penalty.