Betty Broderick's boyfriend Bradley Wright made the chilling 911 call after finding Dan and Linda's bodies
Betty Broderick became a nationwide sensation back in November 1989 when an upscale neighborhood in Hillcrest, San Diego, California, witnessed a double homicide. The death of a powerful and prominent attorney, Dan Broderick, and his new wife Linda Kolkena shook the usually quiet and peaceful neighborhood.
Surprisingly, the bodies were found by Dan's former wife Betty Broderick's boyfriend, Bradley Wright. It was Wright who made the 911 call to authorities on finding the bodies in what was the first of many red flags. Oxygen's 'Snapped: Betty Broderick' looks into the case and also reveals many noteworthy details regarding the shocking crime.
The murders
On November 5, 1989, the bodies of Broderick and Kolkena were found inside their bedroom in their home. Kolkena had been shot in the chest and head, and Dan in his chest. The documentary explains how a gunshot wound to the head is fatal almost every time but a gunshot wound to the chest leads to a person suffering and bleeding to death. The medical examiner had estimated that Broderick had been alive for 20 minutes as he lay bleeding. It is said that a total of five shots had been fired and were likely fired from a .38 caliber weapon. While the house was intact, the killer had made sure to rip some of the wires near the bed and pull out the phone making sure no one could call for help.
The 911 call
It was Betty's boyfriend Wright who made the 911 call and told dispatchers, "Omg, something terrible has happened." He also said that the couple needed help fast. According to a former San Diego Police Officer, Dominic Valaile, "I spoke to the gentleman out front and he tells me he's been inside and he's found what he believes is two dead bodies up in the master bedroom and they've both been shot."
"I checked for signs of life and they were both deceased," Valaile added. As Valaile said, Wright present at the scene was definitely a red flag. Wright explained that he had spent the previous night at Betty's house and told police that around 7 am, he woke up when Betty's phone began to ring continuously. When no one picked up, Wright thought that Betty had gone to the beach for a walk and got up and took the call.
A friend of Betty was on the phone and sounded very upset. "The woman on the phone did not give Wright a lot of detail," author of the book 'The Real Betty Broderick Story' Loretta Schwartz-Nobel said. The woman wanted Wright to go check Dan's house saying something had happened. When he went over to the house, Wright had tried to enter the front door but it was locked and even rang the bell.
He then decided to enter through the side door after breaking the glass. Wright then called 911. At the time, he had not heard from Betty all morning. One of the most crucial details that Wright gave the cops was that the front door had been locked, so whoever had entered the house, had a key. The police dismissed Wright as a suspect since his alibis checked out.
Patrol cops interview
At the scene of the crime, detective Terry Degelder spoke to patrol officers who had first responded to the 911 call. One of the officers at the scene revealed that they had responded to this house before on another domestic violence dispute involving Dan's ex Betty who had been the instigator. Degelder said, "a month and a half before, Betty had taken her chevy suburban and smashed it into the front doors of the house."
When the police got there, Betty picked a fight with the officers and she was taken to County Mental Health for acting bizarre. This led to Dan getting a restraining order against her. When investigators dug deeper, they found that Dan and Betty's divorce had been tumultuous.
Shocking turn in and sentencing
Betty remained missing for a while, as officers obtained a search warrant for her home where they found a case for a .38 caliber weapon and some extra ammunition. They later received a tip that her car was found at her daughter's house where she had also left her purse which contained the murder weapon. After being on the run, Betty turned herself in later that day after walking into the San Diego Police Department with an attorney.
Her trial took place in two parts — the first in 1990 and the second, a year later. When she was first tried, the trial ended in a hung jury. While Betty had tried to show that she had been a victim and was abused by Dan, a year later, she was charged with two counts of second-degree murder and sentenced to 32 years to life, the maximum term.
Catch 'Snapped' on Wednesday, July 15, at 8 pm on Oxygen.