(phone ringing)
(woman speaking)
(man speaking)
(woman speaking)
(man speaking)
(sniffles)
(man speaking)
Woman: Where is the mom?
(man speaking)
Man: There's no logic to what I did.
What happened has nothing to do with me,
Other than the medical condition that affected me.
(woman speaking)
(man speaking)
(woman speaking)
(man speaking)
(michael sr. Speaking)
Man: It's like I want to scream, but I can't.
Everyone look at me and say he's a murderer.
He killed his wife.
(beeps)
Benjamin: My name is benjamin kim.
I'm a criminal defense attorney
In portland, oregon.
I graduated from boston university school of law.
My client, michael winchester, is accused of
Unlawfully and intentionally causing the death
Of his wife, heidi, in winchester.
The prosecution is alleging
That mike winchester strangled his wife
And then tried to kill himself with a box cutter.
He then discovered that his wife may not have been dead,
And so then he took the box cutter,
Cut her neck.
And then she died in a very violent, bloody way.
This case is particularly unique.
At issue is not whether mike winchester physically killed his wife,
We know that he physically did.
The issue of the case is whether or not
He was suffering from a medical condition.
That caused him to kill his wife.
If he is convicted of murder,
He would be spending the rest of his life in prison.
Mike: I'm accused of murdering my wife.
And like I said, it's really hard to say that
Because it just doesn't even feel like
When I say that that I'm talking about myself.
Michael: From day one,
Blake and I have defended our dad.
Because of the fact that he was very ill at the time.
In leading up to that.
And so hearing that a murder charge
Is being placed against my dad,
Is just surreal and...
Heartbreaking and...
Didn't make sense. It didn't add up
To the person that we knew my dad to be.
Blake: I lost my mom.
So I'm a victim here, but I'm supporting my dad
'cause I know it's the right thing to do,
And I know my mom would not want our dad in prison.
Mike: I'm fighting for my boys,
And they want me to, so that makes me feel like
There's no other option for me.
This is a box that annie made for me
To keep all my pictures in.
So...
I put them all in here.
This is a picture from 1984.
One of the first pictures I probably had with annie.
We met at a dance club in portland.
I remember when I left and I just hugged her.
And...
It was just that feeling, like, you know,
You're the one kind of thing.
This is our wedding photograph,
And I just remember being nervous that day.
I'd like to toast,
Um, to michael my best friend
And I look forward...
Look forward to growing old with you.
-All: Aww. -(clapping)
Mike: When michael was born,
I remember the feeling of driving away from the hospital,
When you drive up and said, well,
It's never going to be the same again.
This is blake.
When he was born...
We both loved being parents at that age.
Hi. I am with my sons.
(kisses)
Mike: She was a great mother.
She gave it her all.
It was definitely a happy place.
(babbling)
Mike: This photo was taken
The day before annie had her first surgery.
She was diagnosed with stage 4 rectal cancer.
The doctors told her she had a 15-20% chance of surviving that
And that was in 2011.
It was definitely a sad time,
But it was the time I remember being kind of on adrenaline
Because I was the primary parent at that point,
Probably for the next ten years, and...
I just remember doing what had to happen
From day to day.
It wasn't really a choice
And lots of doctor appointments
And chemotherapy and radiation and...
Trying to raise two boys.
So...
This picture is a sad photo.
It was in October of 2018
And annie's cancer that had started in 2010 came back.
They did another scan
And found that she had cancer in her lung.
At that time...
(exhales)
It's really hard to look at.
The first time was just all adrenaline,
But the second time, it was just so defeating
Knowing that there was nothing that could be done.
And... Well, it wasn't that long after we found out
That her cancer was terminal
And that she really only had a few months to live at that point.
Mike winchester is coming in today.
I want to make sure that he understands
The charges that are against him,
As well as
Getting a more granular
Understanding of every moment that he can remember
That led up to annie's death.
One of the things you should be aware of is that
You're charged in a single count indictment
And it's a single count of murder.
Murder is life
With the possibility of parole after 25 years.
Mike: I was feeling very weak.
I wasn't sleeping.
I wasn't eating.
And when I would close my eyes, I would see bright lights.
Like if your tv was doing static like shh...
That's... I would close my eyes.
That's what I would see, and it would never go away.
There was like this noise in my head.
That didn't really change during that time period.
And then, I was sitting at home
And I just thought to myself, I can't do this anymore.
There was... My brain started thinking,
Or when I say my brain, I was thinking,
I can't do this anymore,
And I felt like I didn't want to live anymore.
That was where... I don't know what happened.
But something happened there
In the sense that I couldn't stop obsessing about suicide.
And I got a rope, and I got a utility blade.
And then I started thinking, I can't leave annie by herself.
That's the first time I thought about anything with annie, at that point.
Um, then I walked down the hallway
And I thought, I'm going to come from...
I'm just going to strangle her, which is what I did.
After that,
I went and got the rope,
Hung it over the railing and I let go.
And the second that I felt the rope take hold,
It severed and I hit the ground and I felt this thump
And I hit my head and my side.
And I got up and this rope cinched around my neck
And it's really tight. I'm holding it.
And I started cutting the rope, and when I did,
I cut my... I nicked myself.
And then I'm thinking, I've got to do something.
So then I started cutting my neck. Cutting my neck...
That didn't do it. And then I started cutting
My wrists, and blood spurting everywhere.
I got light-headed and passed out.
I woke up and, I don't know, it's probably a few hours later,
I heard a sound and I don't know what it was.
It sounded like...
(exhales)
And I thought, oh my god, is she alive?
And at that point, I walked up with a knife
And she was lying face down.
And I came in behind, and I just started cutting.
-Cutting her neck. -Yeah, but I think I almost more protruded it in
Because it was like I poked it in
-Instead of slashing. -Okay.
And...
You know, factually speaking,
There's of course, no way to dispute
The fact that you physically caused the death, right? Um...
So there are possible defenses
That you would have in your case, okay?
Now, my plan is
That you were under the law insane at the time of the incident.
Okay? But this concept of insanity, in general,
Is hard for a jury to wrap its head around. Okay?
It's a hurdle because insanity
For many people means something
That it does not legally mean.
You don't have to be wearing a tinfoil hat,
Bugs crawling on my body kind of insane.
That is not the legal requirement,
But that's what most people think of.
So I need to convince the jury...
That mike winchester
Could not appreciate in any normal sense,
What he was doing.
And that he was legally insane at the time of the homicide.
When mike winchester
Started to get sick and goes into the hospital,
Was hospitalized for four days.
There was obviously some sort of infection going on
Because his white blood cell count went from four to 15.
The hospital said, it probably is meningitis,
But you seem to be getting better.
So we're gonna send you home.
Hi.
I'm not speaking.
(laughs)
My baby's home.
He's such a warrior.
Really happy to have him back.
Okay.
Benjamin: This occurred one month before the homicide.
(phone ringing)
Richard (on phone): Hello, ben.
Benjamin: Hi, richard. How are you?
Richard: I'm okay.
Benjamin: You're aware from looking at the medical records
That there was a diagnosis of likely viral meningitis.
(richard speaking)
Okay. All right.
In terms of a medical expert opinion
As to what mike was suffering at the time,
What is your diagnosis?
(richard speaking)
Benjamin: Can you comment on the psychiatric disorders
Associated with encephalitis?
(richard speaking)
Benjamin: Mm-hmm.
(richard speaking)
Benjamin: Mm-hmm.
(richard speaking)
Alteration of impulse control.
Benjamin: And would it be fair to say
That mike's extreme violent behavior, the suicide attempt,
Is that all consistent with someone
Who has had an acute encephalitis?
(richard speaking)
At the time, I didn't have the ability to really understand
I didn't know why it happened, but now I know why it happened.
I was physically altered at the time,
And I just want that to come out and...
And explaining it is hard because that...
What happened, what I did and for, you know,
The horrible things that happened,
Which are horrible, and that's the part that I have to live with.
I can't get away from what happened.
And I wish I could say I can't remember it.
But I do.
I loved annie,
And that's what was reflected
During the whole time that I was married,
During the whole time she had cancer
And suffered from the effects of it,
And I was always there for her, and I know she knows that.
There's no logic to what I did.
I know that what happened to me was nothing to do with me
Other than the medical condition that affected me.
And it's just whether a jury can wrap their mind around it.
Benjamin: What is your opinion about mike's mental state
At the time of the homicide?
His brain was so devastated by the encephalitis that...
Manifested in a very detrimental way
With these symptoms that were out of his control.
He was so severely affected by the suicidal depression
And the neurological impairment
In combination with the cognitive deficits, like easily confused,
And he can't think of various other options available to him.
It was this internal need to complete this act.
He was just obsessed with this idea of ending his life,
And that was the only option available.
So in this case, my opinion is that he does meet the criteria
For guilty except insane, right?
He's not a perpetrator.
He's a victim of this medical condition.
So, I don't see him
Being culpable in the same way
The average thinking person is in a murder case.
No, I mean, the more I think that we can describe that
In those kind of words,
And describe guilty except insane in that one path,
Then I think a jury is more likely to understand that.
We're not asking to excuse his conduct.
We're saying he did it.
You're guilty. Except you were insane at the time.
If mike is found guilty, except for insane,
He will be committed to the oregon state hospital for review.
My hope would be that mike would be released pretty much that day.
(woman speaking)
It's a mental health evaluation relating to the charges of my case: Murder.
Woman: Hmm.
I couldn't even look at her.
I knew what I was going to do
And she was kind of turned from me,
And I just started strangling her.
And I wasn't looking in her eyes, and I...
Kept doing it. It would seem like it went on forever.
Benjamin: So, right out saying,
The fact that you couldn't look into her eyes.
Means you knew it was wrong.
Megan: Mm-hmm.
If I looked into her eyes, I might not have done it.
Megan: Right.
And then, she says, this suggests his capacity
To appreciate the wrongfulness
Of the conduct remained intact.
I would point out, you know, there's a difference between...
Maybe he understood on some level
It was wrong or he felt bad
That he was putting her through some pain.
Benjamin: Uh-uh.
But that's different than knowing you're engaging in a criminal act.
(woman speaking)
I would say no because...
But I know it is now.
I don't know that. Well, let me think about this.
I don't know that...
At that time, I wasn't thinking about right or wrong.
I was just thinking about the situation.
I mean, would I think it would be against the law?
Probably, yeah. Probably.
But it wouldn't have been something that I was thinking about.
That's as close as he gets to saying,
Yeah, I knew it was against the law.
But again, it's like probably if I had been thinking about it,
In that context, which he clearly wasn't.
Benjamin: My concern is this.
The person lacks substantial capacity
To appreciate the criminality. Right?
I think I'm worried that the answer to that is going to be,
He may not have thought about it at the time, right,
But he could have. He had the ability to do that.
Benjamin: So the note that he wrote says,
"so sorry, boys.
None of this is fair.
I could not bear to watch mom suffer anymore.
I am a failure.
I could see no way for me to move forward and live
And no ability to get out of this despair."
What part of this says, "I know it's wrong to kill annie."
I think this note supports opinion,
That he is just hyper-focused on suicide, right?
-Ross: Mm-hmm. -I mean, he killed his wife.
But that part is like very little.
I mean, this note isn't about sorry, you know, about mom.
Ross: No, I think you're right.
I think it shows that he regrets the suffering.
A necessary choice is going to... Yeah.
Yeah. I mean, if anything,
Like if you were to summarize this note is,
I'm sorry, I'm such a loser.
A failure.
-I couldn't figure out. -Yeah.
I couldn't figure out any other way.
That's right.
So, how does that establish any kind of,
Like appreciation of wrongfulness?
The issue for a jury to understand is that,
"wow, if a guy could write a note like this, he probably was sane.
But I think we get every expert to say,
"no, you can be completely insane
"and still be able to write a note."
And I think that these kind of skills are the last to go.
There you go.
-Thank you. -Oh.
At this point, now that we're so close to the trial,
Practically every day,
Sometimes even by the hour, just comes with
A different emotion and mindset
And different things that I'm having to confront.
So, especially today on thanksgiving,
Where at the time, where I want to be super thankful,
For the time we're all spending. Um...
It's just hard to ignore this charge of murder pressed against him.
Thank you.
I'm happy that we're all here.
Michael: I love you guys a lot.
You did a magnificent job, michael.
Blake: I want this nightmare to end, but I don't want...
I don't want my dad to go away,
But it could be a reality,
And that's the scariest thing about it.
Michael: It's important that I win my case because...
I want to be with my boys.
The boys are everything to me.
They've always been everything to me.
You know, I hate that my kids have to go through this.
It's the one thing that just kills me as a father,
Knowing that I am supposed to be here,
And I want to provide them that safety net that I can't do.
You know, I'm hoping for the best,
But I'm also realistic that...
That I'm not going to be around likely for some time.
As mom would say, very handsome.
The trial, it's now here.
It's been... It was a month ago, and then it's going to be
A week from trial, and now it's actually here.
I've tried to put out of my mind what happened,
And it's going to be right in front of me again, and it's going to be raw.
It's like I want to scream, but I can't
And I just have to sit there
And have everyone look at me and say
"he's a murderer. He killed his wife."
On January 30th, 2019, you'll hear that
Heidi anne winchester was pronounced dead.
She was 50 years old.
She was down, face down on the floor of her bedroom,
In a pool of her own blood.
A heavy duty box cutter knife was found nearby her body.
The cause of death in this case was sharp force trauma on her neck.
I submit to you that the evidence in this case will show
That michael winchester intended to cause her death.
He not only strangled her as she was saying no to him,
But then violently slit her throat,
Leaving her in a bloody pool on the floor.
He did not want her to survive.
Mr. Kim, at your convenience.
Benjamin: This is such a sad, sad case.
And it's difficult because it's such a complicated case.
What would cause
A 53-year-old man who has never been violent,
Who has loved his family,
Has never been in trouble with the law,
Has never had any instance whatsoever that would raise any alarm bells,
What would cause that person
To be in this situation?
It's complicated.
We agree mike winchester physically killed annie winchester that day.
We agree, he strangled her.
We agree, he stabbed her neck.
We agree.
But life is not black and white.
Life is complicated. This case is complicated.
And in this case, I am going to beg you to dig just a little deeper.
When you went up to the second floor, what did you observe?
I remember a lot of blood, um,
And a length of rope hanging from a bannister.
So from this vantage point, I was able to see
The puddle on the floor inside the door,
That appeared to me to be blood.
Can you explain what we're looking at in this photo?
Tony: Substance that's coming from under the door,
That's coming from mrs. Winchester,
And the utility knife there on the right has blood on it.
I believe that was the tool that was used on poor mrs. Winchester.
Adrienne: And the next photo that we'll be looking at is fairly graphic.
Tony: Yes, ma'am.
Can you explain what we're looking at?
John: You're now behind the door.
You can see that she is in, um...
In a prone position laying down on her abdomen.
You can see, her arms are up above her head
As she is face down on the floor.
You can see quite a bit of blood has pooled up
Around in the upper torso area.
That blood pool that we talked about,
That blood stain that was coming out from under the door,
You can see, it appears to be emanating from her head,
Bailiff: All rise for the jury.
Mike: I didn't look at any of the photographs,
Because I don't want to remember annie that way.
There is nothing I wouldn't do to change any of what happened.
But I know that I wasn't healthy, and that will come out.
Benjamin: The state went through a lot of photos.
They're trying to inflame passion.
They're trying to show a bloody scene
That is so bad, that no juror says,
We can't let this go no matter what.
It was too awful.
We can't let it go.
Mike's life is...
In my hands and if I screw up,
If I don't present everything that I can in the best way possible,
Then mike and his family pay the price.
Benjamin: Had you ever seen mr. Winchester
Act violently towards his wife?
No.
Have you ever seen him act violently towards his children?
Absolutely not.
Benjamin: Have you ever seen him act violently?
Never.
Benjamin: Have you ever seen him expressing anything to you
That would indicate that he was suicidal?
No, um...
You know, mike was so devoted to his wife and kids,
That the idea that he would commit suicide was unfathomable to me.
Benjamin: After your dad got out of the hospital,
If you could kind of describe what your dad was like.
He was like a zombie.
Blake: He was very quiet.
I mean, just didn't seem like there was any life in him.
Benjamin: Was anything like the dad you've previously known for your 20 years?
No.
Benjamin: During your interaction with mike, over work matters,
Do you remember anything about the tone of his voice?
It was almost like I didn't recognize mike on the phone.
Um, everything seemed kind of flat.
Not really logical, not really responding to me, just...
He was always so positive and solid
And just level-headed.
And he just seemed very flat.
Benjamin: All right, he... He seemed like a different person.
-Definitely. -Benjamin: Okay.
It's really important for a jury to understand
That mike was insane at the time.
Legally insane because of a form of encephalitis.
Just by reading the medical records,
Had you formed an opinion or suspected
Whether or not mr. Winchester had an encephalitis?
I wasn't sure.
Yeah, the records were not so clear as to what he had.
However, after I examined him, my conviction that he had encephalitis solidified.
Benjamin: Is your opinion that a person with no evidence
Of any kind of violent behavior, no homicidal tendencies,
Or homicidal behavior, his family described him as
As having a personality change
And that he ultimately tries to kill himself
By hanging, cuts himself many times
And kills his wife of 30 years.
Taking all that into account,
Is your opinion the same that that person
Was likely suffering from an encephalitis
That caused a number of psychological and mental state symptoms?
It could not be said more vividly.
Yes.
(intense music playing)
Benjamin: Was there any evidence of functional impairment of mr. Winchester
Prior to December of 2018.
Megan: Not at all.
No, he was functioning at a very high level.
He was able to go to work every day,
Care for his sons, care for his wife,
Take her to her appointments and then, he gets ill
And that pretty much stops.
Benjamin: How unusual is it, in your experience,
Where you would have an individual with no history of mental health illness,
And then all of a sudden, have a mental illness to this severity?
Have you ever seen that happen before?
I have not. That's... It's exceptionally rare.
Benjamin: So what is your opinion about mr. Winchester's mental state
When he caused the death of his wife?
Megan: Because of that medical illness, he could not step back
And self-assess what he was doing.
He was just consumed by it.
By his... This desire to end her suffering and then end his own.
It far superseded any ability to kind of stand back and...
Evaluate the wrongfulness of his behavior,
Or the criminality of his conduct.
Kimberly rideout. R-I-d-e-o-u-t.
During the course of your discussion with mr. Winchester, did he describe for you,
The exact series of events in his own words,
About the method with which he killed his wife?
Kimberly: He did.
Matthew: Did you observe anything that speak
To whether or not he actually engaged in goal-directed behavior
Leading up to the killing of annie winchester?
In the suicide note that he wrote to his children,
Um, he apologized for the act.
And so, when someone apologizes for something,
That connotes an understanding of wrongfulness of the behavior.
He also indicated that he could not look at her
In the eyes, while he was, um, strangling her.
Matthew: And how is that significant to you?
Um, to me, that's another indication of the discomfort
With an act that you know is wrong while you're engaging in it.
And so, again, that, um...
Shows an understanding or an appreciation
Um, that the act was wrong.
Uh, thank you. Nothing further.
-Judge: Cross examination. -Benjamin: Thank you.
From your report and from the direct examination,
It sounded to me, like you were saying
That mr. Winchester
Exhibited intentional goal-directed behavior.
In that, he wrote a note and he indicated that he couldn't
Look into the eyes. Of mrs. Winchester,
Kimberly: I would say, by intentional, I mean, doing it on purpose.
And then, by goal-directed, I mean, in the service of achieving a goal.
A specific goal.
-Benjamin: Okay, so with intent? -Right.
Benjamin: Okay.
And just as a... As a basic question, right,
That I probably should have started with,
Uh, people with severe mental disorders
Can act with intentionality, right?
Kimberly: Yes.
Benjamin: People who are guilty except insane,
Can still act with intentionality. Correct?
Yes.
Benjamin: Okay.
I don't have further questions.
Benjamin: Ultimately, if a jury wants to convict mike of murder,
There will be enough evidence to convict him of murder.
So, in many ways, this is a case that boils down
To what do they think about mike?
And, you know, what do they think about the defense?
Do they like the defense? Do they like mike?
Do they want to let him go?
Mike: Next week, there will be a verdict and whatever happens,
You know, I've got to be prepared
That I can be taken into custody.
And you know, that's very real right now.
Benjamin: Every closing argument I feel, is critical.
I think the key point for us is that,
If mike did not have a brain infection,
If he didn't get sick, we wouldn't be here.
There is no question that the defendant
Intentionally caused the death of his wife.
He actually tried to kill her multiple times.
Ladies and gentlemen, at the end of the day,
This case is about annie winchester.
It's about a woman who, even though her days were numbered,
She had hopes and dreams and aspirations.
Annie winchester ended up dead on the floor,
Face down in her bedroom
With an enormous gash wound to her neck,
Having been strangled by her partner.
Is the defense really suggesting to you
That he did not intend to kill her?
That his conscious objective was not to cause her death?
There is no question about his intent.
Michael winchester intentionally caused her death
And that's been proven to you, beyond reasonable doubt.
So, we ask that you find a verdict of guilty
As to murder in the second degree.
Thank you.
I think you all agree.
That in this tragic case, we would not be here
If mike winchester didn't get a brain illness in December of 2018.
Mike winchester,
The person that you've heard three weeks about,
Is that person thinking rationally?
Is that person thinking with the same cognitive ability
That the state is suggesting?
Or is his cognitive ability so distorted
That he cannot make these decisions in any reasonable manner?
The only thing that makes sense is that he was insane at the time.
That is the only thing.
And if you agree with the defense,
I would suggest to you that mr. Winchester was guilty except for insanity.
Thank you.
(dramatic music playing)
Benjamin: We have a verdict.
-Michael: Oh, jeez. -Benjamin: Yeah.
Um, we have an hour to get there. So, 10:30.
-No problem. -Okay.
This doesn't feel real right now.
I know, just...
Look at me. Look at me.
It's gonna be okay. It's gonna be okay, blake. It's gonna be okay.
Woman: All rise.
Judge: Good morning, everyone.
Thank you. We are on the record in the matter of
State versus winchester, outside the presence of the jury.
Counsel, I understand the jury has a verdict. Are we ready?
Man: Yes, your honor.
Woman: All rise for the jury.
Jury member: Thank you, everyone, please be seated.
Judge: Has the jury reached a verdict?
Woman: Yes.
Man: Winchester please rise.
Jury member: We, the jury, being duly impaneled
And sworn in the above entitled matter,
Do hereby find the defendant
Was michael winchester guilty except for insanity
At the time he caused the death of heidi anne winchester?
Answer, yes.
-(crowd claps) -on the third page.
On the third page check only one box.
The box, manslaughter, guilty except for insanity
Is checked signed by the preceding juror.
-(sobbing) -will either party like to pull t he jurors?
(blake sobbing)
(sobbing)
Mike: I'm just so happy. I mean, I don't have to...
I can walk out of here with my boys.
I'm just... I'm just really...
I'm glad, but I'm just so much more relieved.
Mike: We've got the best possible outcome that could have happened.
I get to be with my family and the people that love me.
Blake: Justice was served. I'm in shock.
But I'm so happy this nightmare is over.
Michael jr: Ah, this is the best case scenario.
So grateful for everybody. (sniffles)
Wow!
Hey, team winchester, right?
Come on.