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[Music]
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While on a business trip in 1986, Edpo
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spent the morning jogging near his hotel
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in downtown St. Louis.
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[Music]
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When he returned to his hotel room, he
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discovered his wife dead in the bathtub.
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The medical examiner ruled the death was
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by drowning. presumably accidental. But
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homicide investigators weren't so sure.
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[Music]
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[Music]
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Ed Post met Julie Thigpan when they were
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both students at the University of
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Southern Mississippi in the 1960s.
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They married in 1967, had two daughters
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and moved to New Orleans.
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Ed went to work in the real estate
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business. His outgoing personality and
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sophisticated manner made him a
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successful salesman right from the
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start.
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>> I thought Ed was a good fellow. What
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you'd expect a real estate salesman to
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be. Kind of relentlessly cheerful.
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>> After a few years, Ed Post became part
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owner of the Wagner Truax real estate
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firm. Julie Post also joined the company
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and was very successful, selling over a
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million dollars of real estate every
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year from 1982 on.
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In June of 1986, the Posts attended a
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real estate convention in St. Louis,
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Missouri at the Omni Hotel at Union
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Station.
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On the morning of June 3rd, Ed Post
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decided to go jogging before the meeting
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started. He said he drew his wife a bath
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and woke her before leaving around 700
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a.m.
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[Music]
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>> Julie. doing. It's time to wake up.
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>> On his way out, he thanked the hotel's
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concierge for a suggestion she made to
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the posts the day before.
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>> Really wonderful.
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>> I'm so glad. It's a wonderful place. If
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there's anything else I can do for you,
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just let me know.
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>> Hello, Siri. Having a nice day?
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>> Yes, I am. Thank you. Have a nice run.
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>> Sure. Ed Post jogged past Bush Stadium
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around the city's famous arch and
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returned to the hotel at 7:40.
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>> How was your run, sir? Was
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>> great. That's terrific. Had a great
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workout this morning. Have a nice day,
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sir.
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[Music]
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>> When he entered his hotel room, he said
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he discovered his wife lying face down
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and unconscious in the bathtub.
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After pulling her body from the water,
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he called for an ambulance at 7:43.
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>> Bathroom. Could you send an ambulance,
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please?
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>> It looked as if Julie Post lost her
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footing and grabbed the towel ring which
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pulled out of the wall.
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At the hospital, Julie Post was
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pronounced dead. She was 39 years old.
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The autopsy revealed that death was due
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to drowning. Ed Post immediately phoned
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his brother, who was a lawyer. Together,
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they photographed the broken towel ring
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and wall mount for a lawsuit against the
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hotel.
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>> His brother told a policeman here in St.
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Louis, I'm going to sue him for $450
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million. You watch.
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Ed Post was convinced that had it not
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been for the faulty towel ring, his wife
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Julie might still be alive.
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After Julie Post was pronounced dead, an
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autopsy was performed in St. Louis
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before the body was transported to New
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Orleans for burial. The autopsy found no
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sign of alcohol or drugs in her system.
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There were no skull fractures or
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bleeding in the brain that would have
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been present if the victim had been
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struck in the head before drowning. In
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short, the pathologist could find no
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evidence of foul play.
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>> I was certainly not convinced that it
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was an accident.
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On the other hand, I couldn't prove that
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it was anything else.
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>> On the death certificate, the manner of
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death was undetermined.
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When the St. Lewis Post Dispatch
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reported the news of Julie Post's death.
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There were some interesting reactions.
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D. Joyce Hayes was a prosecutor in the
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district attorney's office. Her husband
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Gary was a detective in the St. Louis
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Police Department. D had just read an
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article about a woman who was who had
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drowned in a bathtub at the Omni Hotel.
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And uh she said, "Gary, make sure you
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read this. It doesn't sound right to
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me." We both read the article and looked
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at each other and said, "Nah, no way."
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>> The hotel management found it hard to
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believe that a 120 lb woman like Julie
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Post could have pulled the towel ring
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from the wall since the ring had been
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designed to withstand more than twice
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that weight. We went to the two
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adjoining rooms and I probably weighed
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close to 220 lbs at the time
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with all my weight hung on to both towel
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rings in both rooms and neither one of
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them gave nothing.
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>> Edpost told police that he and his wife
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had a very good relationship, but a
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background check of the post's finances
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revealed an interesting coincidence. We
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went to the insurance company
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and lo and behold
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um I don't know 27 29 days uh prior to
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Julie post death Ed had it increased her
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insurance like $45 $500,000. Now, this
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is a woman who's making uh in the low to
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mid $20,000 a year range in salary, and
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he's got this $600 $700,000 life
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insurance policy on his wife. Uh
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that's when I
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begin to believe maybe we have something
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here.
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>> Police also discovered that Ed Post was
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enamored with a married woman who worked
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in his office. Her name was Kim Otan. On
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the day of Julie Post's funeral, Ed made
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an unusual request to Kim Otan.
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>> Kim Otan had a twin sister. And at the
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time of the funeral of Julie, Ed Post
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said to Kim Otan, "Maybe when this is
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over, you can set me up with your
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sister." And that seemed u a most
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inappropriate thing to be saying and
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particularly saying at the time that
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he's alleged to have said it. Police
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were also suspicious about the way Ed
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Post told the story of finding his
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wife's body. The story never varied,
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almost as if it had been rehearsed. St.
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Louis police tape recorded those
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conversations.
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And uh then when she came over the edge
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of the tub
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uh being as wet as she was uh in the
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water there was then at that point once
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I got her partially out of the tub I was
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not prepared for what happened next
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which was she literally slid out at that
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point.
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>> Do you think that she she did hit her
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head on on on the front portion? I think
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that's because
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>> it's the fact that Ed Post in his
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golden tongue glib manner
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uh came off as a
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as a non-aring person that had this
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alibi who had everything down pat. I
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mean, he didn't change his story one
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iota from the first time he told it to
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the second time he told it.
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And some of the hotel employees noticed
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that Ed Post was acting suspiciously on
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the morning of the accident. Before
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leaving the hotel for his morning run,
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Edpost made sure that the concierge knew
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who he was, thanking her for a favor she
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did for him the day before.
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>> I believe you're the one that told us
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about the botanical gardens. My wife
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finally had a chance to visit there
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yesterday. It was spectacular. Really
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wonderful.
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>> I'm so glad. And the hotel doorman said
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that Post introduced himself by name
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before going out for his run.
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>> Hello, sir. You enjoying your stay?
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>> Yes, I am. Thank you. My name is Ed
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Post. I'm going on a run this morning.
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I'll be gone about 30 minutes. Uh, watch
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out for him, please.
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>> I sure will. Have a nice run.
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>> Sure.
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>> You made it a point to say good morning
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to the dorman at the hotel. Say who he
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was and what room he was in and that he
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was going to go out and jog. I mean,
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like, it was from the book of Who Cares?
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The Dorman didn't care. Why would you do
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that?
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>> But all of these incidents simply raised
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suspicions. Homicide investigators had
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no hard evidence that Edpost played any
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role in his wife's death.
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Investigators decided to conduct more
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sophisticated tests on the broken towel
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ring to see if a woman Julie Post's size
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could have pulled it from the wall
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during a fall.
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Prosecutors in St. Louis were starting
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to wonder whether the death of Julie
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Post in the hotel bathtub was truly an
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accident. The autopsy did not find any
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evidence of foul play. So prosecutors
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decided to exume Julie Post's remains
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for a second autopsy. She had been
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buried in a cemetery outside of New
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Orleans. The water table is so high in
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New Orleans that most people are buried
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in above ground vaults, but Julie Post
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had been buried in the ground and her
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body was placed in a wooden casket.
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Investigators feared that water damage
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to the body would be significant. When
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they opened the grave, it was almost
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completely filled with water.
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Fortunately, the foot of the casket was
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the part that sunk. Her head was the
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only part of her body that was not
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submerged in water
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>> and her head was in perfect shape. The
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casket had collapsed and pushed down and
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had pressed flattened her nose from the
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pressure, but that was the only
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disfiguration from the collapsing of the
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casket. Most of the casket collapse had
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been at the foot end. The pathologist
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who performed the second autopsy found
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numerous bruises that were not noted
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during the first autopsy. That's not
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unusual because some bruising continues
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to develop even after death. Ed Post's
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attorney said that the additional
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bruises prove nothing, that they could
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have been caused by the removing of her
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organs and bones for donation shortly
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after her death. But the pathologist
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found two new bruises in a critical
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area. The only additional finding at the
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autopsy
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was an area of bruising that was very
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low far down in the back of the head in
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the upper neck region. Uh where in a
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normal autopsy I usually don't take the
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scalp down quite that far.
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>> I'm looking at these bruises and as far
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as I'm concerned, it's from a thumb and
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a hand. If you're holding somebody
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underwater, you got to hold them by the
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base of the neck if you're if you're
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going to drown them. Next, prosecutors
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turned their attention to the metal
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towel ring found inside the tub next to
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Julie Post's body. The towel ring was
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attached to metal studs inside the wall
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with 1 and 1/2 in screws. The ring and
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wall mount had been designed and
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manufactured to withstand hundreds of
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pounds of force.
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Prosecutors hired Bolter Kelsey, an
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accident reconstructionist, to attempt
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to recreate the accident.
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Kelsey conducted his experiments at the
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Hotel Omni in a room with an identical
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towel ring attached to the wall in the
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same way as the towel ring in Ed and
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Julie Post's room. And for the test,
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Kelsey used a woman who was the same
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height and weight as Julie Post. Kelsey
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asked the model to simulate a fall by
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grabbing onto the towel ring with all of
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her weight. Nothing happened.
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Then she was asked to wrench the ring
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back and forth.
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>> Again, nothing happened.
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>> What we found was that uh doing some
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calculations based on what information
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we had on the ultimate strength of the
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ring that we could not remove it or a
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person couldn't remove it at that size
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unless she fell about 64 ft and grab the
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towel ring as she went by. And of
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course, the hotel room has an 8ft
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ceiling, so there's no way that that
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could happen. Finally, as a last resort,
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Kelsey asked the model to use both hands
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to remove the towel ring in any way she
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could. After considerable effort, the
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ring came off.
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>> Concept that Julie Post somehow grabbed
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this towel ring during a fall and pulled
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it off the wall was impossible. It could
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not physically have happened that way.
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Next, prosecutors sent an identical
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towel ring and wall mount to Dr. William
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Wines, a professor of mechanical
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engineering at the University of
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Nebraska in Lincoln. Dr. Wines was asked
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to determine how much force was required
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to remove the towel ring from the wall
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attachment. Those tests revealed that it
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took between 480 and 500 lb of force to
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remove it from the wall.
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It was also obvious very early on the
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testing that those types of modes of uh
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force application straight pulls pulls
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down clearly didn't match the evidence
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that the the deformed toler failed to
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ring didn't look anything like the tower
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ring in question here
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>> the base plate had damage underneath the
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stem and on the left side the towel ring
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itself also had been damaged
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Dr. Wines performed 23 different tests
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to reproduce the damage found on the
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base plate and towel ring. All without
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success.
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But on test number 24, Dr. Wines
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produced something very close. That test
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indicated that the towel ring was
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removed from outside the bathtub. Our
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conclusion was that it was taken off the
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wall by by someone with considerable
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strength and it was uh you know the type
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of action where one would grab it and
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pull outside the tub and it was uh uh
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and if you look at the location of it,
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it would be consistent for instance with
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someone like putting their foot on the
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edge of the tub and grabbing the tow
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ring and then pulling it off out toward
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the outside of the tub. Prosecutors now
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had scientific proof that Julie Post
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death was no accident.
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In 1986,
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New Orleans was going through its worst
00:16:05
economic downturn since the Great
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Depression. Many local businesses were
00:16:10
affected and real estate was just one
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more casualty. Ed Post was 10% owner of
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the Wagner Truax real estate business
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and was responsible for 10% of the
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losses which in 1985 and 86 were
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substantial. And the Post's marriage was
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going through a downturn of its own.
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Friends said that Ed and Julie fought
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frequently fights which were sometimes
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physical and Kim Otan who worked with
00:16:38
the posts said that Ed Post had made
00:16:40
advances towards her in the months
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before Julie's death.
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>> I think that Ed fell in love with Kim
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Otan. Just him being a free man wouldn't
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get Kim. He had to be a free man with
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lots of money
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to compete with her husband.
00:17:00
And he hatched this plan. Prosecutors
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believe that plan was in motion one
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month before Julie's death when Ed Post
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increased his wife's life insurance.
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On June 3rd, 1986,
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before going out for his morning run,
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prosecutors believe that Post drowned
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his wife in the hotel bathtub.
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Afterwards, he pulled the towel ring
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from the wall, not only to corroborate
00:17:49
his cover story that Julie fell while
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holding on to the towel ring, but also
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for the money, the potential settlement
00:17:56
from the hotel in a civil lawsuit.
00:18:01
After the murder, Post made sure to
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speak with both the hotel concierge and
00:18:06
doormand to cement his alibi. Yes, sir.
00:18:09
Thank you. My name is Ed Post. I'm going
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to be going on a run this morning. Thank
00:18:13
you.
00:18:13
>> The whole business with the towering,
00:18:15
which is really what killed him, not
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literally, but figuratively.
00:18:20
You know, he had to go pull that off the
00:18:23
wall.
00:18:25
He had to go pull that off the wall so
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that he could set up a lawsuit against
00:18:29
the Omni Hotel and get more money.
00:18:33
The greedy sob.
00:18:36
>> 3 years after Julie Post's death, Ed
00:18:39
Post went on trial for firstdegree
00:18:42
murder. Ed Post pleaded not guilty and
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took the stand in his own defense.
00:18:48
>> Ed's demeanor on the stand, I think,
00:18:50
could best be described as follows. He
00:18:54
was very well-dressed. He was very
00:18:56
articulate. Spoke uh at a very uh
00:19:00
sophisticated level. Uh including his
00:19:02
use of the language. Um spoke I think uh
00:19:07
far differently than the jurors were
00:19:11
accustomed to speaking or hearing. Uh he
00:19:13
did not speak with a southern accent at
00:19:15
all although he was from New Orleans.
00:19:17
Um, and he came across as as Ed often
00:19:22
came across as condescending.
00:19:25
And I think that um, those things did
00:19:28
not play well.
00:19:30
>> And the scientific experts provided
00:19:32
powerful testimony that Julie Post was
00:19:35
not capable of removing the towel ring
00:19:37
during a fall. It took the jury less
00:19:41
than a day to reach its verdict. Ed Post
00:19:44
was found guilty of firstdegree murder
00:19:47
and was sentenced to life in prison
00:19:49
without possibility of parole. Ed Post
00:19:52
and his attorneys appealed the
00:19:54
conviction. And in a plea bargain, Post
00:19:57
agreed to plead guilty to seconddegree
00:19:59
murder and confessed to the murder of
00:20:02
his wife in exchange for a 30-year
00:20:05
prison sentence that included the
00:20:07
possibility of parole. If he doesn't
00:20:10
take the tower ring off, he gets away
00:20:12
with it. It's just an accidental
00:20:15
drowning.
00:20:17
I mean,
00:20:19
look at how it happened. Almost
00:20:21
everybody classified it as undetermined
00:20:23
or accidental.
00:20:25
But for that, Ed Post would be on his
00:20:27
merry way. He probably sued the army,
00:20:28
got a couple million dollars, and had
00:20:31
700,000 in life insurance.
00:20:34
We wouldn't even know who he was.
00:20:36
In my opinion,
00:20:39
the most important thing uh in the trial
00:20:44
was the science. It was the tile ring.
00:20:47
When you when you can show that it was
00:20:50
red back and forth, back and forth until
00:20:52
it until it broke or until it came
00:20:53
loose. Um that convicted him. If he
00:20:58
would have left that out of there, he
00:21:00
might be a free man today.
00:21:03
[Music]
00:21:11
Why?
00:21:14
[Music]
00:21:26
Heat.
00:21:29
[Music]
