Dying For Love
By Marla Martenson. Posted on .
I am fascinated by high profile murder trials that are in the news. I regularly watch Nancy Grace and other shows that follow the process and break down the strategies of the prosecutor and defense. I find it interesting to learn what is admissable and what will not be allowed in evidence, and the forensic science that can reconstruct a crime is amazing. Unfortunately, many of the victims have been murdered at the hand of their spouse or lover.
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The two high profile trials that have my attention at the moment are the Jodi Arias trial and the "Cannibal Cop" Trial.
Jodi Arias is accused of shooting her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander in the head, stabbing him multiple times, and slitting his throat from ear-to-ear in 2008. Arias says she killed him in self-defense. If convicted of first-degree murder, she could face the death penalty.
Gilberto Valle, a New York City police officer, apparantly had a taste for human flesh. He was charged with plotting to kidnap, torture, “slow cook” and eat women he tracked down through law enforcement databases. He was living a double life — a married dad and civil servant who moonlighted as a secret psycho straight out of a James Patterson crime thriller, federal authorities revealed.
Valle's wife, Kathleen Cooke Mangan, a school teacher, contacted the FBI after reportedly finding "weird stuff" on her husband's computer last month. This included the "names, photos, dates of birth, heights, weights and bra sizes of dozens of women," as well as a detailed "tactical plan" to abduct, rape, kill, cook and eat victims.
Upon discovering the plan, Mangan immediately fled the state, taking the couple's young daughter with her.
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How well did Kathleen Mangan really know her husband? What a shock it must have been for her to discover his sick plot. Did she ever have ANY signs that he was a sick monster? She was lucky to escape.
We have also heard about Las Vegas resident Mary Kay Beckman who says she ended an 8-day relationship in 2010 with Wade Mitchell Ridley. Months later, she claims he returned and tried to end her life, stabbing her 10 times.
The world of love can be a scary place. We want to trust, to be able to put our heart in the hands of a soul mate. We don't want to feel jaded or overly suspicious. It is important to follow our gut feeling. Looking back, many victims can see (hindsight is 20/20) the signs and remember the feelings that they had that something was off. Something did not resonate within their soul that indicated this relationship might not be a good idea.
