Zahn: TWIN SISTERS PEGGY AND BETTY WERE TWO PEAS IN A POD.
WE'RE A PART OF EACH OTHER.
THEY DID EVERYTHING TOGETHER.
WE WERE VERY CLOSE. WE SLEPT IN THE SAME BED.
BUT WHEN ONE SISTER'S HUSBAND TURNED UP DEAD...
I WISH THAT I COULD HAVE HELD HIM.
...HER MARRIAGE LOOKED LIKE A MOTIVE FOR MURDER.
YOUR HUSBAND GAVE YOU PERMISSION TO HAVE MULTIPLE AFFAIRS?
HE SAID THAT'S WHAT MARRIED PEOPLE DO.
Man: DID YOU COMMIT THE MURDER?
DID YOU PAY SOMEONE TO KILL YOUR HUSBAND?
Zahn: WAS IT A TWIN KILLING...
PEOPLE WANT TO SEE BLOOD.
...OR THE BIGGEST FRAME-UP
IN THE HISTORY OF MADISON COUNTY?
Fry: I TOLD HIM THAT IF HE LIED,
I WOULD PUT HIS SORRY ASS IN THE ELECTRIC CHAIR.
[ HORNS HONKING ]
[ HELICOPTER BLADES WHIRRING ]
ONCE YOU KNEW WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO YOU...
THE POLICE COME TO VISIT YOU.
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]
-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com
CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS
I'M PAULA ZAHN,
AND TONIGHT WE'RE ON THE CASE IN HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA.
WHAT STARTED OUT AS A FAMILY TRAGEDY
WOULD SOON BECOME A BAFFLING MYSTERY.
CAUGHT IN A TANGLED WEB WERE TWIN SISTERS
AND ONE OF HUNTSVILLE'S MOST PROMINENT DOCTORS.
ON MAY 22, 1992, AT 9:30 P.M.,
AN HYSTERICAL WOMAN CALLED 911.
BETTY WILSON HAD JUST RETURNED TO HER UPSCALE HOME
AND DISCOVERED HER HUSBAND, DR. JACK WILSON,
LYING IN A POOL OF BLOOD.
SHE FLED THE SCENE IN A PANIC.
TELL ME ABOUT MAY 22, 1992.
WHEN I CAME HOME, I WALKED IN...
AND DISCOVERED JACK'S BODY.
I WAS TERRIFIED.
DO YOU THINK PEOPLE WERE STILL IN THE HOUSE AT THAT POINT?
THERE WAS NO THINKING. IT WAS FEELING.
AND I RAN. AND I'M SORRY THAT I DID.
I WISH THAT I COULD HAVE HELD JACK.
I WISH THAT I COULD HAVE HELD HIM.
BUT BETTY WOULD NEVER GET THAT CHANCE.
HER HUSBAND WAS DEAD.
POLICE ARRIVED AND STARTED PROCESSING THE CRIME SCENE.
THEY FOUND DR. WILSON,
WHO HAD APPARENTLY BEEN STABBED AND HAD ALSO BEEN BEATEN.
AND HE HAD FAIRLY SAVAGELY BEEN ATTACKED.
Zahn: DR. WILSON HAD BEEN STABBED TWICE.
DETECTIVES ALSO FOUND A BLOODY BASEBALL BAT NEXT TO HIS BODY.
DR. WILSON HAD BROKEN BONES, AS I RECALL, IN HIS FOREARM,
IN HIS ELBOW, AND ALSO HAD A TOOTH THAT WAS CHIPPED,
WHICH PROBABLY WAS A RESULT OF THE BASEBALL BAT.
Zahn: INVESTIGATORS REALIZED
WILSON'S MURDER WAS NOT A ROBBERY GONE WRONG.
Fry: THERE WAS NOTHING MISSING. NOTHING OF VALUE WAS TAKEN.
AND SO THEY WERE IN QUITE A QUANDARY
AS TO WHAT THE MOTIVE HAD BEEN, SINCE NO VALUABLES WERE TAKEN,
ALTHOUGH THERE WAS JEWELRY AND SILVER IN THE HOUSE.
Zahn: THE WILSONS' THREE-STORY HOME
WAS FILLED WITH EXPENSIVE THINGS,
BUT THE ONLY ITEM MISSING WAS A .38-CALIBER PISTOL.
BETTY TOLD POLICE
SHE COULDN'T THINK OF ANYONE WHO WOULD WANT HER HUSBAND DEAD.
JACK WAS THE MOST PRECIOUS PERSON I'VE EVER KNOWN.
HE WAS VERY FUNNY, AND HE WAS VERY BRIGHT.
THERE WAS NEVER ANY BROODING
OR POUTING OR ARGUING.
HE WAS THE EASIEST PERSON IN THE WORLD TO LIVE WITH.
[ DUCKS QUACKING ]
55-YEAR-OLD DR. JACK WILSON, A WEALTHY OPHTHALMOLOGIST,
WAS BELOVED BY HIS PATIENTS,
THE HUNTSVILLE COMMUNITY, AND HIS FAMILY.
[ WOMAN LAUGHS ]
JACK WAS EVERY GOOD THING YOU COULD SAY ABOUT A PERSON.
HE WAS FUNNY, SMART.
HE DIDN'T HAVE A PRETENTIOUS BONE IN HIS BODY.
HIS HEARTBROKEN WIFE OF 14 YEARS
RECALLED THE LAST TIME SHE SAW HIM ALIVE.
Wilson: HE PUT HIS ARMS AROUND ME
AND KISSED ME LIKE A MAN KISSES A WOMAN.
AND HE HELD ME,
AND HE SAID, "I LOVE YOU, BABE."
AND I'LL CARRY THAT WITH ME [SNIFFLES]
INTO ETERNITY.
EARLY THE NEXT MORNING,
BETTY CALLED THE PERSON SHE MOST WANTED BY HER SIDE,
HER CLOSEST FRIEND AND CONFIDANTE, TWIN SISTER PEGGY.
SHE TOLD HER THE HORRIFYING NEWS.
I THOUGHT I UNDERSTOOD HER TO SAY
THAT JACK WAS DEAD.
BUT I REALLY COULDN'T MAKE THAT BE REAL.
BUT I REMEMBER TELLING MY FAMILY THAT JACK WAS DEAD,
THAT I HAD TO GO TO HUNTSVILLE.
PEGGY LIVED TWO HOURS AWAY
AND IMMEDIATELY DROVE TO BE WITH HER SISTER.
SHE WAS SHAKING ALL OVER --
HER HEAD, HER SHOULDERS, HER BODY.
THAT'S WHEN THE REALIZATION STRUCK ME
THAT JACK IS DEAD.
BUT I STILL DIDN'T KNOW HOW.
BETTY AND PEGGY WONDERED
WHO COULD HAVE DONE SUCH A HEINOUS THING.
WITH NO LEADS AND NO MOTIVE,
DETECTIVES WERE JUST AS FRUSTRATED.
BUT THEN THEY CAUGHT A BREAK.
A TIP CAME IN FROM VINCENT, ALABAMA,
TWO HOURS AWAY FROM HUNTSVILLE.
IT WAS ABOUT A MAN NAMED WHITE.
WE HAD A CONCERNED CITIZEN IN THE COUNTY
THAT OVERHEARD A CONVERSATION
THAT MR. WHITE HAD STATED THAT HE WAS GOING TO HUNTSVILLE
OVER THE WEEKEND TO KILL SOMEONE.
THIS PERSON DIDN'T KNOW WHO THE VICTIM WAS TO HAVE BEEN
BUT HAD BELIEVED THAT MR. WHITE, INDEED, WAS GONNA DO THIS.
Zahn: THE CALL CAME IN DAYS BEFORE DR. WILSON'S MURDER.
VINCENT POLICE DIDN'T TAKE IT SERIOUSLY AT THE TIME.
BUT AFTER DR. WILSON WAS KILLED,
VINCENT POLICE NOTIFIED HUNTSVILLE DETECTIVES.
THEY BROUGHT JAMES WHITE IN FOR QUESTIONING.
HE WAS LIKE A RAT IN A TRAP.
FROM THE TIME THEY BEGAN TALKING TO HIM,
HE GAVE SEVERAL DIFFERENT STATEMENTS.
Zahn: AT FIRST WHITE CLAIMED HE WAS FOUR HOURS AWAY FROM HUNTSVILLE,
VISITING HIS CHILDREN ON THE NIGHT OF THE MURDER.
BUT OUT OF THE BLUE, WHITE CHANGED HIS STORY.
HE SAID HE HAD ACTUALLY STAYED IN VINCENT THAT NIGHT
TO GO DRINKING AND CLUBBING.
POLICE WERE LEARNING A LOT ABOUT THEIR SUSPECT,
AND NONE OF IT WAS GOOD.
HE DRANK, TOOK PILLS, NEVER HAD A GOOD JOB,
HAD HAD, I THINK, A COUPLE OF MARRIAGES,
PROBABLY WAS BEHIND ON HIS CHILD SUPPORT.
HE WAS CERTAINLY A PART OF SOCIETY'S LOWER ECHELON.
Zahn: DETECTIVES WERE CONVINCED THEY HAD THEIR MAN,
SO THEY TURNED UP THE PRESSURE,
INFORMING WHITE THEY KNEW HE WAS LYING.
THEY KNEW HE HAD GONE TO HUNTSVILLE.
THEN WHITE DEMANDED TO SPEAK WITH THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY.
HE WANTED TO MAKE A DEAL BEFORE HE WOULD TELL HIS STORY.
COMING UP, A SHOCKING
AND SURPRISING CONFESSION.
IT WAS ASTONISHING. IT WAS SHOCK AND DISBELIEF.
WHILE THE GRIEVING WIDOW, BETTY WILSON,
WAS MOURNING THE MURDER OF HER HUSBAND,
DETECTIVES HAD TAKEN A POSSIBLE SUSPECT INTO CUSTODY.
BUT HE WAS REFUSING TO TALK
UNLESS HE COULD CUT A DEAL WITH THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY.
EVENTUALLY, PROSECUTORS AGREED
TO TAKE THE DEATH SENTENCE OFF THE TABLE IN WHITE'S CASE,
BUT ONLY IF HE CAME CLEAN FIRST
AND TOLD THEM EVERYTHING HE KNEW ABOUT JACK WILSON'S MURDER.
WHITE STARTED TALKING.
HE DID ADMIT THAT HE MURDERED DR. WILSON
AND THAT HE DID THAT BASED ON AN AGREEMENT, OR A CONTRACT,
WITH DR. WILSON'S WIFE, BETTY.
Zahn: IT WAS A STUNNING TURN OF EVENTS,
A DRAMATIC CONFESSION AND ACCUSATION ROLLED INTO ONE.
WHITE SAID HE WAS HIRED AS A HIT MAN
BY NONE OTHER THAN BETTY WILSON.
AND THAT WASN'T ALL.
ACCORDING TO WHITE, THE WHOLE PLAN
WAS THE BRAINCHILD OF BETTY'S TWIN SISTER, PEGGY.
DETECTIVES IMMEDIATELY QUESTION THE TWIN SISTERS.
Zahn: DESCRIBE HEARING THAT JAMES WHITE...
TOLD INVESTIGATORS THAT THE TWO OF YOU
HAD COME TO HIM TO KILL BETTY'S HUSBAND.
I KNEW IT WAS NOT TRUE.
BETTY'S NOT CRAZY.
I DIDN'T KNOW WHY THEY WERE SAYING THAT.
BOTH TWINS INSISTED ON THEIR INNOCENCE,
BUT INVESTIGATORS WERE CONVINCED THEY WERE LYING.
THEY THOUGHT FROM THE BEGINNING
THE CRIME SCENE FIT THE PROFILE OF A MURDER FOR HIRE.
DETECTIVES BLUFFED.
THEY TOLD EACH SISTER THE OTHER HAD CONFESSED.
DID YOU BELIEVE AT THAT MOMENT
THAT YOUR SISTER HAD CONFESSED?
I KNEW THAT THAT WAS ENTIRELY OUT OF THE QUESTION.
I KNEW THAT THEY WERE LYING, BECAUSE THAT COULDN'T BE TRUE.
HER SISTER, PEGGY, HAD THE SAME REACTION.
DID YOU HAVE ANY SENSE AT ALL
OF WHAT THEY WERE TRYING TO DO?
NO.
I KNEW WHAT THEY WERE SAYING.
I HEARD WHAT THEY WERE SAYING.
BUT I COULDN'T INTERNALIZE IT.
SO WHEN I HEARD THAT,
THE ONLY THING I COULD SAY IS, "THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE."
THEY TOLD ME, AFTER THEY SAID THAT PEGGY HAD CONFESSED,
THAT "THERE WAS A MAN COMING
"TO GIVE YOU A POLYGRAPH,
"BUT THINGS WOULD GO MUCH EASIER FOR YOU
IF YOU JUST CONFESS BEFORE HE GETS HERE."
AND I TOLD HIM TO BRING ON THE MAN WITH THE POLYGRAPH.
THE POLYGRAPH TEST NEVER HAPPENED.
IT WAS JUST PART OF AN EFFORT TO UNNERVE BETTY.
FINDING THEMSELVES PRIME SUSPECTS
IN BETTY'S HUSBAND'S MURDER LEFT THE TWINS IN A STATE OF SHOCK.
I SAT UP ALL NIGHT THINKING,
"I WILL WAKE UP. I WILL WAKE UP FROM THIS."
IT WAS OVERPOWERING.
IT WAS MORE THAN I WAS, OR AM,
EQUIPPED TO DEAL WITH.
I MEAN, CAN YOU IMAGINE SOMEONE ACCUSING YOU OF MURDER?
BADLY SHAKEN BY THE ALLEGATIONS,
THE TWINS FOUND COMFORT IN EACH OTHER,
JUST LIKE THEY ALWAYS HAD SINCE THEY WERE LITTLE GIRLS.
LET'S TALK ABOUT YOUR CHILDHOOD
AND YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR TWIN SISTER, PEGGY.
WE WERE INSEPARABLE.
WE LOVE EACH OTHER BECAUSE WE'RE A PART OF EACH OTHER.
WE SPEAK THE SAME LANGUAGE. WE THINK VERY MUCH ALIKE.
THEY WERE BORN JUST 12 MINUTES APART,
AND GROWING UP, THE TWINS DID EVERYTHING TOGETHER.
Lowe: WE WERE VERY CLOSE.
WE SLEPT IN THE SAME BED
UNTIL WE GOT SO LARGE
THAT OUR FEET WERE IN EACH OTHER'S FACES.
IN HIGH SCHOOL, PEGGY WAS A BEAUTY QUEEN.
BETTY ACTED IN SCHOOL PLAYS.
EVEN AS ADULTS,
THEIR LIVES MIRRORED EACH OTHER IN REMARKABLE WAYS.
BOTH MARRIED THEIR FIRST HUSBANDS IN 1964,
AND SIX YEARS LATER, BOTH WERE DIVORCED.
THEN, IN 1976, BETTY TOLD HER TWIN
SHE HAD MET THE MAN OF HER DREAMS, DR. JACK WILSON.
Lowe: BETTY'S A REGISTERED NURSE.
SHE MET HIM AT THE HOSPITAL,
AND SHE CALLED ME THE NEXT DAY, AND SHE SAID, "I'M IN LOVE."
TWO YEARS LATER, BETTY AND JACK WERE MARRIED.
EACH BROUGHT THREE CHILDREN WITH THEM.
WITH JACK'S THRIVING MEDICAL PRACTICE,
A LAVISH THREE-STORY HOME, AND A BIG, BLENDED FAMILY,
THE HAPPY COUPLE SEEMED TO HAVE IT ALL, EVEN AFTER 14 YEARS.
THEY APPEARED JUST AS DEVOTED TO EACH OTHER AS THE DAY THEY MET.
Wilson: WE HAD SO MUCH GOING FOR US.
WE DID HAVE IT ALL IN VERY, VERY MANY WAYS.
BUT NOW THOSE HAPPY MEMORIES SEEMED A LIFETIME AWAY.
JACK WAS DEAD,
AND THE TWINS WERE BEING ACCUSED OF HIS MURDER.
IT FELT LIKE THAT BAD DREAM YOU'RE HAVING
THAT YOU CONSCIOUSLY ARE WISHING YOU COULD WAKE FROM.
BUT IF THE SISTERS THOUGHT THEY COULD WISH THE NIGHTMARE AWAY,
THEY WERE SORELY MISTAKEN.
JUST HOURS AFTER THE TWINS WERE RELEASED,
INVESTIGATORS SEARCHED THE HOME OF THEIR ACCUSER, JAMES WHITE,
AND FOUND SHOES SMEARED WITH BLOOD.
THEN THEY MADE ANOTHER DISCOVERY.
THE MAIN THING THAT WAS FOUND AT HIS RESIDENCE WAS A PISTOL,
WHICH WAS FOUND UNDERNEATH THE FRONT PORCH
ON THE PROPERTY WHERE HE LIVED,
AND THAT PISTOL ACTUALLY BELONGED TO BETTY WILSON.
Zahn: WHITE CLAIMED THE TWINS GAVE HIM BETTY'S GUN TO USE IN THE HIT.
HE EVEN TOLD THEM EXACTLY WHERE THE HAND-OFF TOOK PLACE,
ABOUT 7 MILES OUTSIDE OF VINCENT, ALABAMA.
Fry: JAMES WHITE SAID THAT HE WAS GIVEN THE GUN
THROUGH AN EXCHANGE AT A PARKING PLACE AT THE LOGAN MARTIN DAM.
Zahn: DETECTIVES CHECKED OUT HIS STORY.
THEY LOOKED INTO THE TWINS' WHEREABOUTS
ON THE DAY WHITE SAID THEY HANDED HIM THE GUN.
WE WERE ABLE TO PROVE, ON THE DAY HE SAID THAT HAPPENED,
PEGGY AND BETTY CHECKED OUT A MOVIE AT A VIDEO STORE
ABOUT TWO MILES FROM THAT DAM.
THEY WERE THERE.
THEY WERE IN THE VICINITY THAT DAY.
Zahn: WITH DETAIL AFTER DETAIL APPEARING TO BE ACCURATE,
WHITE WAS GAINING CREDIBILITY WITH DETECTIVES.
HE WENT ON TO EXPLAIN WHY HE USED A BASEBALL BAT IN THE HIT
INSTEAD OF BETTY'S GUN.
HE WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE SHOT DR. WILSON.
BUT AT THE TIME OF THE ACTUAL MURDER,
HE SAID, HE WAS AFRAID OF THE NOISE FROM THE PISTOL,
THAT IT WOULD ATTRACT TOO MUCH ATTENTION.
Zahn: SO FAR, WHITE'S STORY SEEMED IN SYNC WITH THE EVIDENCE.
DID YOU GIVE JAMES WHITE BETTY'S GUN?
NO.
HOW DO YOU THINK HE ENDED UP WITH YOUR SISTER'S GUN?
I THINK HE STOLE IT.
THE CASE WAS STILL A HE SAID/SHE SAID/SHE SAID.
WITH HIS PLEA BARGAIN PENDING,
WHITE WAS ARRESTED AND CHARGED WITH CAPITAL MURDER,
BUT DETECTIVES WERE STILL CONVINCED
THE SISTERS WERE BEHIND THE KILLING,
AND THEY WERE DETERMINED TO PROVE IT.
COMING UP, BETTY WILSON ADMITS TO AN ADULTEROUS LIFESTYLE.
WAS IT A MOTIVE FOR MURDER?
YOU'RE TELLING ME YOUR HUSBAND GAVE YOU PERMISSION
TO HAVE MULTIPLE AFFAIRS?
IT WAS SEX. IT WAS MALE ATTENTION.
Zahn: POLICE WERE LOOKING INTO THE STORY
OF CONFESSED KILLER JAMES WHITE.
HE SAID HE WAS HIRED AS A HIT MAN
BY BETTY WILSON AND HER SISTER, PEGGY LOWE.
NOW POLICE WANTED TO KNOW, WAS HIS STORY TRUE?
AND COULD THEY MAKE A CASE AGAINST THE TWINS?
DETECTIVES QUESTIONED BETTY ABOUT HER MARRIAGE
AND QUICKLY DISCOVERED
IT WASN'T THE PERFECT UNION IT SEEMED TO BE.
SHE TOLD THEM ABOUT A TURNING POINT IN THEIR RELATIONSHIP.
HE SAT ME DOWN ONE DAY,
AND HE SAID, "YOU'RE SUFFOCATING ME."
HE WENT ON TO TELL ME THAT VERY DAY,
"HAVE AN AFFAIR.
HAVE A DOZEN AFFAIRS. BUT DON'T SUFFOCATE ME."
YOU'RE TELLING ME YOUR HUSBAND GAVE YOU PERMISSION
TO HAVE MULTIPLE AFFAIRS?
YES.
HE SAID, "THAT'S WHAT MARRIED PEOPLE DO."
YOU WERE HURT.
OH, JUST DEVASTATED. I DRANK AT HOME AT NIGHT.
BETTY SAYS THAT FATEFUL NIGHT CHANGED HER LIFE.
SHE FOUND COMFORT IN THE ARMS OF OTHER MEN AND WITH ALCOHOL.
BUT THE COMFORT WOULDN'T LAST LONG.
HER DRINKING AND INFIDELITY SOON STARTED TO SPIN OUT OF CONTROL.
HOW MANY RELATIONSHIPS DID YOU HAVE OUTSIDE OF YOUR MARRIAGE?
IT WAS SEX.
AND, ACTUALLY, IT WASN'T EVEN SEX.
IT WAS MALE ATTENTION,
TO BE WANTED, TO BE DESIRED.
EVENTUALLY, BETTY REALIZED
THAT ALCOHOL WASN'T FILLING THE VOID IN HER LIFE,
AND SHE TOLD HER SISTER SHE HAD A PROBLEM AND NEEDED TO QUIT.
SHE TOLD ME THAT SHE GOT SICK AND TIRED
OF BEING SICK AND TIRED.
SHE STARTED GOING TO A.A.
SHE WENT TO AT LEAST TWO MEETINGS A DAY.
BETTY'S DRINKING MAY HAVE STOPPED,
BUT HER AFFAIRS CONTINUED.
BETTY SAYS HER UNCONVENTIONAL MARRIAGE
WAS DRIVEN BY JACK'S QUIRKY PERSONALITY.
HE WAS SO DETACHED FROM THIS WORLD.
ON HIS WILL, HE WROTE,
"DO NOT OPEN, EXCEPT IN AN EMERGENCY."
[ BOTH CHUCKLE ]
THAT'S JACK WILSON.
WHAT WAS IN YOUR HUSBAND'S WILL?
WELL, UH...OF COURSE, EVERYTHING CAME TO ME.
AND "EVERYTHING" WAS A LOT.
BETTY WAS DESIGNATED AS THE SOLE BENEFICIARY
OF HER HUSBAND'S MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR FORTUNE.
ONE OF THE INVESTIGATORS SAID
YOU HAD 6 MILLION REASONS TO WANT HIM DEAD,
AND HE WAS REFERRING TO SOME $6 MILLION
THAT MADE UP HIS ESTATE.
YOU KNOW, THAT'S A -- THAT'S A PRETTY CHEAP SHOT,
YOU KNOW, FOR HIM TO SAY, "6 MILLION REASONS."
I HAD 6 MILLION REASONS TO WANT HIM ALIVE.
BUT INVESTIGATORS THOUGHT THE WILSONS' OPEN MARRIAGE
WAS A RECIPE FOR DIVORCE AND MOTIVE FOR MURDER.
Fry: HAD THEY DIVORCED, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN VERY UNFAVORABLE
FOR HER IN DIVORCE COURT.
HER MOTIVE SINCE THE BEGINNING
WAS THAT SHE BASICALLY HAD IT ALL BUT SHE WANTED MORE,
AND SHE WANTED IT NOW.
Zahn: IF BETTY'S MOTIVE FOR MURDER WAS MONEY,
WHAT WAS HER TWIN SISTER, PEGGY'S?
REMEMBER, THE CONFESSED KILLER, JAMES WHITE,
SAID PEGGY WAS THE MASTERMIND BEHIND THE PLOT.
PEGGY AND HER HUSBAND WERE BOTH TEACHERS AT THE SAME SCHOOL,
WHERE WHITE WAS A PART-TIME HANDYMAN.
PEGGY SAYS ALL SHE WAS TRYING TO DO
WAS HELP WHITE THROUGH A DIFFICULT TIME.
Lowe: MR. WHITE TOLD ME
HIS WIFE HAD DIVORCED HIM AND REMARRIED
AND TAKEN HIS CHILDREN FROM HIM.
HE HAD TO HAVE WORK SO THAT HE COULD GET HIS CHILDREN BACK.
SO WE GAVE HIM WORK AT OUR HOUSE,
AND HE JUST DID LITTLE THINGS, HANDYMAN THINGS.
BUT WHITE TOLD INVESTIGATORS
THAT THE RELATIONSHIP QUICKLY DEVELOPED
INTO SOMETHING MUCH MORE SERIOUS.
THEY BEGAN TALKING, COMMUNICATING NIGHTLY.
SOMETIMES THEY'D TALK FOR HOURS ON END,
AND PHONE RECORDS INDICATE
THAT THEY TALKED MANY, MANY, MANY, MANY TIMES.
CAN YOU CHARACTERIZE FOR US
WHAT YOU COULD POSSIBLY HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT
FOR HOURS AT A TIME SOMETIMES?
AT THAT TIME, MR. WHITE WAS CALLING ME A LOT.
IT WAS LIKE SOMETHING THAT MR. WHITE NEEDED.
AND IF YOU HAVE EVER KNOWN ANYBODY
WHO HAS GONE THROUGH A REALLY BAD DIVORCE,
THAT THAT'S JUST ALL THEY COULD TALK ABOUT.
NOW, I GUESS HE TALKED TO ME BECAUSE I WOULD LISTEN.
I FELT LIKE THAT WAS VERGING ON BEING RIDICULOUS,
THAT A WOMAN OF HER STATION IN LIFE, WITH A HUSBAND,
WOULD BE TALKING TO THIS FELLOW EVERY NIGHT FOR HOURS AT A TIME.
Zahn: WHITE SAYS HE FELL IN LOVE WITH PEGGY, THE FORMER BEAUTY QUEEN.
Fry: THEY HAD A SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP.
HE WAS INFATUATED WITH PEGGY LOWE, BETTY'S SISTER,
AND HE HOOKED ON HER.
AND CLEARLY, HIS MOTIVE WAS,
HE WANTED TO DO WHATEVER HE COULD DO TO PLEASE PEGGY LOWE.
DO YOU BELIEVE THAT JAMES WHITE ACTUALLY TOLD INVESTIGATORS
THAT HE HAD FALLEN IN LOVE WITH YOU
AND THAT YOU HAD SOME SORT OF CLANDESTINE RELATIONSHIP?
IT WAS JUST LIKE
EVERY OTHER RIDICULOUS THING THAT I HEARD.
AND THE THINGS THAT ARE GOING THROUGH MY MIND RIGHT NOW,
I WOULDN'T WANT TO SAY AT THIS TIME,
BUT IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE.
Zahn: ACCORDING TO JAMES WHITE, PEGGY WANTED TO KILL DR. WILSON
BECAUSE HE WAS ABUSIVE TO HER SISTER.
WHITE ALSO TOLD AUTHORITIES HE MADE A DEAL WITH THE SISTERS.
$5,000 FOR THE HIT --
$2,500 UP FRONT, THE REST AFTER IT WAS DONE.
FOR A HANDYMAN WHO ALWAYS HAD TROUBLE PAYING HIS BILLS,
THAT WAS A LOT OF CASH.
DID YOU EVER WANT YOUR HUSBAND KILLED?
OH, NO. OH, NO.
WAS THERE EVER ANY EXCHANGE OF MONEY
TO HAVE YOUR HUSBAND MURDERED?
NO. ABSOLUTELY NOT.
DETECTIVES WEREN'T SO SURE.
THEY DECIDED TO FOLLOW THE MONEY TRAIL.
WE WERE ABLE TO TRACE ABOUT THAT AMOUNT IN CASH,
WHICH HE PAID TO PAY OFF BILLS THAT WERE OVERDUE,
IMMEDIATELY BEFORE THE TIME OF THE MURDER.
AND WE NEVER FOUND ANY OTHER EXPLICABLE REASON
THAT HE WOULD HAVE THE MONEY.
Zahn: WHITE ALSO SAID BETTY GAVE HIM MONEY
TO HELP HIM ATTEND AN ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS RETREAT.
THE HAND-OFF HAPPENED AT AN A.A. MEETING SHE WAS ATTENDING.
HE SAID SHE SLIPPED $200 INSIDE A BOOK
AND GAVE IT TO A SECURITY GUARD WHO WALKED IT OUT TO WHITE.
POLICE CONFIRMED THE STORY WITH THE GUARD
AND RECOVERED THE BOOK INSIDE WHITE'S CAR.
THE BOOK WAS CHECKED OUT BY BETTY
BUT BELONGED TO THE HUNTSVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY.
Zahn: THE EVIDENCE WAS STACKING UP --
INFIDELITIES...
DR. WILSON'S FORTUNE...
PHONE RECORDS...
A PISTOL...
AND THE ACCUSATION OF THE CONFESSED KILLER.
AUTHORITIES DECIDED TO MOVE AGAINST THE TWINS.
TODAY, MAY THE 28th,
CAPITAL-MURDER WARRANTS WERE ISSUED
FOR BETTY AND HER TWIN SISTER.
THE POLICE CAME IN,
AND THEY STARTED PUTTING HANDCUFFS ON US.
AND BETTY HAD ON A ROLEX WATCH.
AND IT WAS AS IF THE FACT THAT SHE HAD ON A ROLEX WATCH
MADE THAT OFFICER FURIOUS.
HE YANKED THAT WATCH OFF HER WRIST
AND THREW IT ACROSS THE FLOOR.
HE SAID, "YOU WON'T NEED THIS WHERE YOU'RE GOING."
Lowe: THEY PUT US IN THE BACKSEAT OF A CAR.
IT WAS LIKE A MEDIA CIRCUS.
Man: MRS. WILSON, DID YOU COMMIT THE MURDER?
DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENT
ON THE DEATH OF YOUR HUSBAND BY BASEBALL BAT AND STABBING?
I CAN'T EVEN TELL YOU HOW MANY POLICE CARS AND CAMERAS
AND PEOPLE PUTTING MICROPHONES TO OUR FACES...
DID YOU PAY SOMEONE TO KILL YOUR HUSBAND?
Zahn: BETTY AND PEGGY, THE INSEPARABLE SISTERS,
WERE CHARGED WITH CAPITAL MURDER.
THE HUNTSVILLE PRESS COULDN'T GET ENOUGH
OF WHAT WAS BECOMING A REAL-LIFE SOAP OPERA.
THIS STORY BECAME THE TALK OF THE TOWN.
IT WAS BEYOND A MEDIA FRENZY.
Man: BETTY, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY?
IT WAS A LITTLE DIFFERENT FROM THE TYPICAL MURDER IN ALABAMA.
SUDDENLY, WE HAVE PEOPLE
THAT LOOK LIKE THEY'RE OUT OF A MOVIE SET,
WHO ARE BEAUTIFUL AND ARTICULATE.
IT WAS A SENSATION.
Zahn: COMING UP, BETTY WILSON ON TRIAL FOR HER LIFE.
WHO DO YOU THINK THEY THOUGHT YOU WERE?
A RICH BITCH.
TO ME, SHE WAS LIKE A LAMB BEING LED TO THE SLAUGHTER.
Zahn: THE CASE HAD BECOME A SENSATION --
TWIN SISTERS CHARGED WITH CAPITAL MURDER.
THE MEDIA CALLED THEM "THE BLACK WIDOWS."
NOW, LESS THAN A YEAR AFTER DR. JACK WILSON WAS FOUND DEAD,
HIS WIFE BETTY'S TRIAL WAS SET TO BEGIN.
Man: ANY COMMENT ON THE CHARGE OF CAPITAL MURDER?
Man #2: BETTY WILSON PRESENTED A NEW LOOK...
Zahn: THE STATE OF ALABAMA WOULD TRY THE TWIN SISTERS SEPARATELY,
WITH BETTY WILSON'S TRIAL SLATED FIRST.
DESCRIBE THE MEDIA FRENZY SURROUNDING YOUR CASE.
THE TRIAL WAS LIKE A THREE-RING CIRCUS.
YOU KNOW HOW PEOPLE WANT TO SEE BLOOD.
AND IT WASN'T JUST THE MEDIA.
IT'S JUST GOT THE RIGHT INGREDIENTS.
IT'S GOT SEX, MONEY, INTRIGUE,
AND IT'S GOT THE ADDED TWIST OF TWO TWINS.
Man: IT'S GONNA BE IN THE NEWS,
IT'S GONNA BE BOOKS, THERE'S GONNA BE MOVIES,
AND I JUST WANT TO SAY, "I WAS THERE."
Reporter: IN TUSCALOOSA, ON EYEWITNESS NEWS AT 10:00.
Fry: IT WAS A LITTLE BIT LIKE BEING IN A MOVIE.
BETTY CAME IN WELL-MANICURED
AND DRESSED IN, BASICALLY, DESIGNER CLOTHES.
THE JUDGE HAD ALLOWED HER TO HAVE HER HAIR DONE
EVERY MORNING BEFORE COURT.
Zahn: WHEN YOUR TRIAL GOT UNDER WAY,
WERE YOU CONFIDENT THAT YOU WOULD BE FOUND NOT GUILTY?
YES.
YOU KNOW, WE HAD THE EVIDENCE.
WE HAD THE WITNESSES. WE HAD MY INNOCENCE.
Zahn: BUT THE STATE WAS EQUALLY CONFIDENT.
THEY CALLED BETTY'S FRIENDS,
MEMBERS OF HER ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS GROUP,
AND HER HUSBAND'S COLLEAGUES TO TESTIFY AGAINST HER.
Fry: WE CALLED A WITNESS WHO HAD BEEN A CLOSE FRIEND OF BETTY WILSON'S
WHO TESTIFIED THAT BETTY WAS THINKING
ABOUT KILLING DR. WILSON.
WHY WOULD ANYBODY TESTIFY
THAT THEY HAD OVERHEARD YOU SAYING,
"I WISH MY HUSBAND WERE DEAD," IF IT WEREN'T TRUE?
WHY WOULD SOMEBODY MAKE THAT UP?
SHE'S THE KIND OF PERSON
WHO DOES VERY MEAN AND SPITEFUL THINGS.
BUT SHE WASN'T THE ONLY PERSON WHO CAME FORWARD.
OTHER WITNESSES WHO WERE SIGNIFICANT
WERE PEOPLE WHO WORKED FOR DR. WILSON
WHO HAD HEARD BETTY MAKE VERY DEMEANING COMMENTS IN PUBLIC
ABOUT DR. WILSON.
HE HAD HAD A COLOSTOMY,
AND SHE CALLED HIM IN PUBLIC, IN FRONT OF OTHER PATIENTS,
A [BLEEP] BAG AND CALLED HIM A SON OF A BITCH.
Zahn: THE PROSECUTION SHOWED THE JURY
IMAGES OF BETTY'S HOME AND EXTRAVAGANT POSSESSIONS,
PAINTING A PORTRAIT OF A SPOILED WOMAN
OBSESSED WITH MATERIAL THINGS.
AND THEN THERE WERE THE INFIDELITIES.
Fry: WE WERE ABLE TO PROVE SHE HAD A LIFESTYLE OF PROMISCUITY.
HER OWN CHARACTER, BASICALLY,
WAS USED AGAINST HER AS A MOTIVE FOR WHAT SHE DID.
Zahn: THE STATE BROUGHT IN A WITNESS
WHO ADMITTED ON THE STAND TO HAVING HAD AN AFFAIR WITH BETTY.
IT WAS A BOMBSHELL.
WHAT DIFFERENCE DO YOU THINK IT MADE
THAT HE CAME FORWARD AND ACTUALLY SAID
THAT HE HAD HAD A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU?
I DON'T THINK THAT PEOPLE WOULD BE THAT...EXCITED
ABOUT AN AFFAIR HAD IT NOT BEEN A BLACK MAN.
SO, WHEN THIS BLACK MAN APPEARED BEFORE THE JURY,
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE IMPACT OF THAT WAS?
THE JURY, RIGHT AWAY, YOU KNOW, BEGAN LOOKING AT ME
WITH DISGUSTED EXPRESSIONS ON THEIR FACES.
BETTY'S DEFENSE TEAM ACCUSED THE STATE OF RACISM.
Fry: FROM THE BEGINNING, THEY SAID,
"WELL, YOU KNOW, FRY PLAYED THE RACE CARD."
WELL, I'M GOOD, BUT I'M NOT THAT GOOD.
I COULDN'T TICK OFF THE WHITE PEOPLE ON THE JURY
AND THE BLACK PEOPLE ON THE JURY AT THE SAME TIME.
THE FACT OF THE MATTER WAS, HE IS THE ONLY PERSON
WHO WE WERE ABLE TO IDENTIFY SPECIFICALLY
AND WHO ADMITTED TO THE AFFAIR.
HOW MUCH DO YOU THINK THE JURY BOUGHT INTO THE NOTION
THAT YOU WERE A GREEDY WOMAN,
THAT YOU WERE A LOOSE WOMAN?
I THINK THAT THEY BOUGHT INTO THAT
BECAUSE THAT WAS POUNDED HOME.
I WAS PORTRAYED AS A PERSON WHO WOULD BE VERY EASY TO HATE.
Zahn: THE STATE FELT CERTAIN IT HAD ESTABLISHED A MOTIVE
AND PORTRAYED BETTY AS A WOMAN CAPABLE OF MURDER.
BUT PROSECUTORS WERE WORRIED
THAT ONE PIECE OF THEIR CASE WAS VULNERABLE.
I THOUGHT FOR A LONG TIME ABOUT THE LIBRARY BOOK.
AS A FORMER DEFENSE ATTORNEY, I THOUGHT,
IF THEY COULD EVER EXPLAIN THE BOOK,
THEN MAYBE SHE HAD A CHANCE, THAT MAYBE WE COULDN'T WIN.
Zahn: PEGGY TOOK THE STAND AND ATTEMPTED TO DO JUST THAT.
SHE SAID HER SISTER, BETTY, HAD GIVEN JAMES WHITE $200
INSIDE A LIBRARY BOOK
THROUGH A HAND-OFF AT AN ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS MEETING.
I JUST FELT LIKE, WHEN I EXPLAINED WHAT HAD HAPPENED,
THAT WE WERE TRYING TO HELP HIM, THAT PEOPLE WOULD UNDERSTAND.
WHAT WAS THAT MONEY FOR?
FOR HIM TO GET A PLACE TO SLEEP.
DON'T YOU THINK THAT LOOKS SUSPICIOUS TO THE JURY?
I GUESS IF YOU KNEW ANYTHING ABOUT A.A.,
IT WOULD NOT SEEM STRANGE.
THAT'S A PART OF WHAT WE DO. THAT'S A PART OF WHO WE ARE.
YOU KNOW, WE HELP THE ALCOHOLIC WHO'S STILL SUFFERING.
PEGGY ALSO TESTIFIED SHE AND HER HUSBAND PAID WHITE
TO DO WORK AT THEIR HOME
BECAUSE THEY WERE TRYING TO HELP WHITE THROUGH A TOUGH TIME.
MR. WHITE TOLD ME
THAT HE WAS AFRAID THAT HE WOULD START DRINKING
BECAUSE HIS WIFE HAD DIVORCED HIM.
ON THE STAND,
PEGGY FELT THAT HER DECLARATIONS OF HER SISTER'S INNOCENCE
WERE FALLING ON DEAF EARS.
I ACTUALLY SAW JURORS SLEEPING DURING MY TESTIMONY.
I THINK THE STATE HAD BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL
AT TURNING THEM AGAINST HER.
TO ME, SHE WAS LIKE A LAMB BEING LED TO THE SLAUGHTER.
THE TRIAL CAME TO A CONCLUSION,
AND BETTY'S LIFE WAS IN THE HANDS OF THE JURY.
WHEN THE JURY WAS DELIBERATING,
WHAT DID YOU THINK THE VERDICT WOULD BE?
I COULDN'T BRING MYSELF TO THINK.
I WAS NUMB TO THE BONE.
AFTER DELIBERATING NINE HOURS OVER A TWO-DAY PERIOD,
THE JURY HANDED DOWN ITS VERDICT --
BETTY WILSON, GUILTY OF CAPITAL MURDER.
SHE WAS SENTENCED TO LIFE IN PRISON WITHOUT PAROLE.
Man: BETTY, ANY REACTION?
HOW DO YOU THINK THE JURY DID SEE YOU?
WHO DO YOU THINK THEY THOUGHT YOU WERE?
A RICH BITCH.
SO, ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT YOU THINK, IN PART,
YOU WERE CONVICTED BECAUSE OF THE LIFESTYLE YOU LED
OUTSIDE YOUR MARRIAGE?
I THINK THAT WAS 99% OF IT.
AFTER THE VERDICT, BETTY'S TWIN SISTER WAS IN A STATE OF SHOCK.
I CRIED. I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT.
COMING UP, PEGGY FACES HER OWN JURY.
HE'S ADMITTED THAT HE LIED.
NOW EVERYBODY IS GOING TO SEE
THAT THIS WHOLE THING IS A LIE.
Zahn: WANT MORE "ON THE CASE?"
GO TO...
...AND VIEW MORE EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS
AND BEHIND-THE-SCENES VIDEO.
BETTY WILSON HAD JUST BEEN CONVICTED OF CAPITAL MURDER
FOR HIRING A HIT MAN TO KILL HER HUSBAND.
NOW HER TWIN SISTER, PEGGY LOWE, WAS ABOUT TO BE TRIED
FOR THE SAME CRIME, BASED ON THE SAME FACTS,
BUT WITH A DIFFERENT JUDGE AND JURY.
PEGGY'S TRIAL SEEMED LIKE A CASE OF DéJà VU.
THE STATE WOULD WEAVE THE SAME SORDID TALE OF MURDER FOR HIRE
THAT PUT BETTY BEHIND BARS,
AND, ONCE AGAIN,
THE STAR WITNESS WAS THE CONFESSED KILLER, JAMES WHITE.
THIS CASE HAS BEEN TRIED ONCE BEFORE.
JIMMY FRY WON ONE IN TUSCALOOSA.
WHY WOULD I WANT TO CHANGE ANYTHING?
Zahn: BETTY WAS A CONFESSED ADULTERER,
AND THE STATE HAD CONVINCED HER JURY
SHE WAS ALSO A MATERIALISTIC AND MEAN WOMAN.
BUT IT WOULD BE A DIFFERENT STORY WITH PEGGY,
A CHURCHGOING GRADE-SCHOOL TEACHER.
THE STATE COULD NOT ACTUALLY SMEAR HER CHARACTER.
SHE HAD LIVED A LEGITIMATE, PRISTINE LIFE.
SHE TOOK A LOT OF PEOPLE IN,
DID A LOT OF GOOD TURNS AND GOOD DEEDS.
Zahn: AS PEGGY'S TRIAL STARTED, THE COURTROOM WAS CRAMMED
WITH DOZENS OF HER FELLOW CHURCH MEMBERS, ALL SITTING IN SUPPORT.
Watson: THEY CAME IN DROVES. THEY HAD T-SHIRTS.
THE SLOGAN, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY,
WAS "FREE PEGGY LOWE."
Zahn: THE STATE USED PEGGY'S PHONE RECORDS,
LISTING HER LONG CONVERSATIONS WITH JAMES WHITE,
TO SHOW THEY WERE CONSPIRING TO KILL HER TWIN'S HUSBAND.
BUT PEGGY'S DEFENSE COUNTERED
SHE WAS JUST LENDING AN EAR TO A FRIEND IN NEED.
DO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW SOME MEMBERS OF THE JURY
MIGHT FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE
THAT YOU REALLY WERE A WOMAN JUST REACHING OUT
TO A MAN IN TROUBLE?
I THINK, WHEN MY JURY HEARD
TESTIMONY AFTER TESTIMONY
THAT THAT WAS MY CHARACTER,
THAT THEY DIDN'T FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE.
Man: READY FOR TESTIMONY?
Zahn: THE DEFENSE TEAM TORE INTO JAMES WHITE'S TESTIMONY.
THEY SAID HE WAS LYING ABOUT EVERYTHING,
INCLUDING HIS CLAIMS OF A ROMANCE WITH PEGGY.
WHY DO YOU THINK JAMES WHITE
WOULD MAKE UP STORIES ABOUT YOU?
WHY WOULD HE LIE ABOUT THE NATURE OF YOUR RELATIONSHIP?
I THINK HE WAS COACHED TO SAY EVERYTHING HE SAID.
A MAN WHO'S TELLING THE TRUTH
DOESN'T CHANGE HIS STORY SEVEN TIMES.
Zahn: BEFORE THE TRIAL, JAMES WHITE HAD DONE JUST THAT.
HE HAD GIVEN A SERIES OF CONFLICTING STATEMENTS.
JAMES WHITE DID NOT EDUCATE THE INVESTIGATORS.
THE INVESTIGATORS EDUCATED HIM.
EVERY TIME THE GOVERNMENT FOUND SOMETHING OUT,
FOUND SOME EVIDENCE,
THEY WENT BACK TO JAMES, AND JAMES TESTIFIED TO IT.
Zahn: PEGGY'S DEFENSE POUNCED ON WHITE FOR HIS INCONSISTENT STATEMENTS.
Watson: HE'S JUST A PATHOLOGICAL LIAR.
HE TOOK ALL KINDS OF PILLS, DID A LOT OF MARIJUANA SMOKING,
DRANK ANYTHING HE COULD DRINK.
Zahn: NOT ONLY DID WHITE'S STATEMENTS CHANGE,
BUT HIS RECOLLECTION OF THE EXACT EVENTS
OF THE NIGHT OF THE MURDER WAS HAZY.
WHEN ASKED HOW DR. WILSON WAS STABBED,
WHITE SAID HE HAD CONSUMED TOO MUCH DRUGS AND ALCOHOL
TO REMEMBER USING ANYTHING OTHER THAN A BASEBALL BAT.
HE MADE A STATEMENT THAT HE SMOKED SIX JOINTS,
DRANK SIX BEERS, OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT,
AND THEN WENT IN THAT HOUSE AND WAITED FOR JACK TO GET THERE.
SO HE WAS PSYCHOLOGICALLY --
IF FOR NO OTHER REASONS, BECAUSE OF SUBSTANCE ABUSE,
HE WAS PSYCHOLOGICALLY
AND PROBABLY PSYCHIATRICALLY IMPAIRED.
Zahn: PEGGY'S LAWYERS TOLD THE JURY
ABOUT WHITE'S DOCUMENTED HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS.
HE HAD JUST COME OUT OF A MENTAL INSTITUTION WHEN I MET HIM,
WHERE HE HEARD VOICES THAT HE COULD NOT DISCERN
IF THEY WERE REAL VOICES OR IMAGINARY VOICES.
Zahn: WITH WHITE'S CREDIBILITY CRUMBLING,
PEGGY'S DEFENSE TEAM WENT AFTER OTHER WITNESSES
WHO TESTIFIED AT BETTY'S TRIAL.
Watson: BEING ABLE TO STUDY BETTY'S TRIAL WAS A MAJOR ADVANTAGE,
KNOWING WHAT THE WITNESSES WERE GONNA SAY
AND KNOWING HOW TO APPROACH THEM.
Zahn: THE CASE WENT TO THE JURORS.
THEY DELIBERATED FOR JUST TWO HOURS
BEFORE RETURNING WITH A VERDICT.
Foreman: WE, THE JURY, FIND THE DEFENDANT NOT GUILTY.
[ CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ]
Zahn: "NOT GUILTY." PEGGY LOWE WAS A FREE WOMAN.
Lowe: I TOOK A DEEP BREATH...
...AND I THANKED THE JURY.
AND I THANKED MY LAWYERS.
AND THEN WE ALL...
JOINED HANDS IN THAT COURTROOM.
AND WE ALL GOT DOWN ON OUR KNEES AND THANKED GOD.
WHEN JURORS GAVE REASONS FOR THEIR VERDICT,
JAMES WHITE WAS AT THE TOP OF THEIR LIST.
Cole: I DIDN'T THINK JAMES WHITE HAD HAD ANY CREDIBILITY AT ALL.
WHEN HE ANSWERED QUESTIONS, HE WAS KIND OF VAGUE.
HE WOULD SAY, "I DON'T ALWAYS REMEMBER,
BECAUSE I DID DRUGS AND I DRANK A LOT OF ALCOHOL."
WHEN HE DECLARED HE HAD AN AFFAIR WITH PEGGY LOWE,
I WAS JUST REALLY DUMBFOUNDED
BECAUSE SHE SEEMED LIKE SUCH A NICE SOUTHERN LADY.
Zahn: IN HER PRISON CELL, TWIN SISTER BETTY GOT THE NEWS.
OH, IT WAS SUCH A RELIEF.
PEGGY WAS CHARGED WITH THE SAME CRIME THAT YOU WERE.
SHE WAS TRIED WITH THE SAME EVIDENCE.
AND YET SHE WAS ACQUITTED, AND YOU WERE CONVICTED.
WHY?
BECAUSE I WAS A RICH BITCH WHO HAD AN AFFAIR WITH A BLACK MAN.
FOR BOTH TWINS,
BETTY'S CONVICTION REMAINS A BITTER PILL,
ONE THEY BELIEVE WAS NOT BASED ON WHAT SHE DID
BUT ON WHO SHE WAS.
THEY PORTRAYED HER AS BEING THE KIND OF PERSON
THAT ONE COULD ONLY HATE.
AS HER PROSECUTOR KEPT SAYING, "SHE HAD IT ALL."
AFTER THE TWINS' TRIALS,
JAMES WHITE SIGNED HIS PLEA BARGAIN --
LIFE IN PRISON BUT NO DEATH SENTENCE.
Man: MR. WHITE, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY?
Zahn: BUT ONE YEAR AFTER BETTY WAS SENTENCED
AND NINE MONTHS AFTER PEGGY'S TRIAL, A SHOCKING DEVELOPMENT.
JAMES WHITE RECANTED HIS TESTIMONY.
Lowe: HE'S ADMITTED THAT HE LIED.
NOW EVERYBODY IS GOING TO SEE
THAT THIS WHOLE THING IS A LIE.
I JUST KNEW THAT WAS THE END OF IT.
BETTY'S GONNA BE COMING HOME.
BUT BEFORE BETTY COULD BE SET FREE,
WHITE WOULD HAVE TO TESTIFY UNDER OATH AT A HEARING.
PROSECUTOR JIMMY FRY DIDN'T BELIEVE A WORD
OF WHITE'S NEW VERSION OF EVENTS.
HE WENT TO PRISON TO TALK WITH HIM.
Fry: I WENT DOWN TO INTERVIEW HIM AND REMINDED HIM THAT THE DEAL --
AND I TOLD HIM THAT IF HE LIED
ABOUT ANYTHING THAT WAS A MATERIAL FACT
IN THE CASE THAT I TRIED,
THAT I BASICALLY WOULD PUT HIS SORRY ASS IN THE ELECTRIC CHAIR.
Zahn: WHITE MADE A DRAMATIC APPEARANCE AT A HEARING
THAT COULD HAVE PAVED THE WAY FOR BETTY'S FREEDOM,
BUT IN THE COURTROOM, HE DIDN'T SAY A WORD.
WHEN MR. WHITE TOOK THE STAND,
HE TOOK THE FIFTH TO EVERYTHING,
INCLUDING HIS OWN NAME.
BETTY'S MOTION FOR A NEW TRIAL WAS DENIED,
AND IN THE YEARS SINCE, SHE HAS EXHAUSTED ALL OF HER APPEALS.
Watson: IT'S GONNA TAKE NEWLY DISCOVERED EVIDENCE
AND NEWLY DISCOVERED FACTS TO GET HER A NEW TRIAL.
Zahn: THE TWIN SISTERS
WHO DID EVERYTHING TOGETHER AS LITTLE GIRLS
HAVE NOW SPENT NEARLY TWO DECADES APART.
ARE YOU ABLE TO FULLY GRASP
YOUR STATUS AS HAVING BEEN ACQUITTED
AND HER STATUS AS A CONVICTED CRIMINAL?
CAN I GRASP THAT?
ABSOLUTELY NOT.
HAVE YOU EVER, OVER THE YEARS, FELT A SENSE OF GUILT
THAT YOUR SISTER WAS PUT IN PRISON AND YOU WEREN'T?
YES, BECAUSE...
THIS WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED
HAD I NOT BEEN TRYING TO HELP A PERSON
AND GOT BETTY INVOLVED IN IT.
BETTY STILL MAINTAINS SHE'S AN INNOCENT WOMAN,
CLAIMS THAT HAVE BEEN TEMPERED BY ALL THOSE YEARS BEHIND BARS.
DO YOU THINK
YOU WILL SPEND THE REST OF YOUR LIFE IN PRISON?
YES, I DO. I DO.
WHO DO YOU BLAME FOR SITTING HERE TODAY?
I DO BELIEVE THAT, YOU KNOW, NUMBER ONE,
IF I HAD BEEN A BETTER WIFE,
I PROBABLY WOULDN'T BE HERE.
IF YOU HAD STAYED COMMITTED TO HIM AND HIM ALONE,
YOU WOULDN'T BE IN PRISON TODAY?
EXACTLY.
IN 2006, BETTY WILSON REMARRIED
WHILE SERVING HER LIFE SENTENCE AT AN ALABAMA STATE PRISON.
BUT THE COUPLE DIVORCED JUST TWO YEARS LATER,
CITING INCOMPATIBILITY.
I'M PAULA ZAHN. THANKS FOR WATCHING.
JOIN US NEXT TIME WHEN WE'RE BACK ON THE CASE.