[2] Investigators examined the contents of the Snow-Webking household and discovered the source of the cyanide: the bottle of Excedrin capsules that both Snow and Webking had used the morning of Snow's death. She claimed to have bought the two bottles at different times in different stores. Then there was the insurance. ER 2002-12, 2014-16 Milford Haven, Dyfed, SA73. This, in turn, brought in the FBI. 00:19:08 - Mrs. Stella Nickell might have actually gotten away with it too, if it weren't for her greed and a touch of karma. She'd told the staff that she needed it to kill ants. Stella Nickell Fast forward to 1986. Now 27, Hamilton had been in and out of Stella's life for years. Stella Maudine Nickell (ne Stephenson; born August 7, 1943) is an American woman who was sentenced to ninety years in prison for product tampering after she poisoned Excedrin capsules with lethal cyanide, resulting in the deaths of her husband Bruce Nickell and Sue Snow. She lived with the Nickells months before Bruce died. They had thought it was drug overdose, but she was not a known user, and had taken only a couple of Extra - Strength Excedrin. Detective Mike Dunbar, who worked on the case, says she wanted insurance money. Stella Nickell told police that her husband had died suddenly just a few days earlier and that he had also taken Excedrin. [5], Records from the Auburn Public Library, when subpoenaed, showed that Stella had checked out numerous books about poisons, including Human Poisonings from Native and Cultivated Plants and Deadly Harvest. A consortium of drug companies, alarmed about product tampering, posted a $300,000 reward. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Im afraid for her life: Riverside CC womens coach harassed after Title IX suit, Want to solve climate change? Although the defense challenged her credibility, the jury believed her and convicted Stella of fatally poisoning her husband and Sue Snow. [3] At 6:30 am, their 15-year-old daughter Hayley found Snow collapsed on the floor of her bathroom, unresponsive and with a faint pulse. Click on the bell icon to manage your notifications at any time. Stella resented Bruces newfound sobriety because it deprived her of their visits to bars. Farr and Ciolino have been traveling the country without pay, interviewing witnesses and friends, talking to anyone who may help them. She told police, and doctors realized that Bruce Nickell had also been poisoned. A year and half after Bruce Nickell died, Stella Nickell was arrested and stood trial in federal court. Paramedics were called and transported Snow to Harborview Medical Center, but she died later that day without regaining consciousness. Never-before-seen photos and details about accused Idaho killer Stella refused, her lawyer saying she was too shaken up. One June evening in 1986, he came home with a headache and four Excedrins. The FBI began an investigation into possible product tampering having been the source of the poison. In early 1974, when she was 32, she met Bruce Nickell. Stella met Bruce Nickell in 1974. Make her serve the whole sentence or until she dies. The Old Crime is New Again newsletter is a monthly email covering a topic that has not appeared in the blog. She told the FBI that her mother had talked for years about killing her husband, and went to the library to research poisonous plants and cyanide. She stands by her testimony that her mother had talked about killing Bruce, though she never said Stella confessed. When her mom's autopsy results showed she had died of cyanide poisoning, Klein struggled to process the news. When emergency personnel arrived, she told them that Bruce had taken Excedrin capsules and fallen unconscious. The Chicago Tylenol case had resulted not only in the 1983 Federal Anti-Tampering Law under which she was charged, but FDA requirements that products be packaged with tamper-resistant technology such as blister-packs, bottle mouth seal covers, shrink wrap bottle covers, visible seals that must be broken to open the bottle, and taped box ends. When investigators came to Nickells home to pick up the Excedrin bottle, she told them that there were two bottles and that she had purchased them on different days at different places. by Scott McCabe. She was the first person to be found guilty of violating the Federal Anti-Tampering Act after putting cyanide. FBI working to identify unknown victims of serial killer Stella Nickell was found guilty in federal court not of murder but of product tampering on May 9, 1988, and was sentenced to 90 years. In early 1974, when she was 32, she met Bruce Nickell. [2] Further tests showed that the substance was an algaecide used in home aquariums, sold under the brand name Algae Destroyer. As of April 2019, Stella Nickell is housed at female-only low security/minimum security Federal Correctional Institution, Dublin in California, just east of San Francisco. Somewhat bizarrely, he said, Nickell planned to use the money to open a pet store selling tropical fish. But the policy would pay an additional $100,000 if he died from accidental causes. "Why in the world would she have a second bottle of contaminated capsules just sitting there waiting to hand over to law enforcement," asks Farr. She had a history of abusing drugs. [13], On December 9, 1987, Stella was indicted by a federal grand jury on five counts of product tampering, including two which resulted in the deaths of Bruce and Snow,[6][14] and arrested the same day. "I think that she probably killed Bruce and expected them to find out that he died from cyanide poisoning," he says. She said that she didnt testify for the reward. She told the FBI that her mother had talked for years about killing her husband, and went to the library to research poisonous plants and cyanide. Police initially focused on Snow's husband Paul Webking. Brian Walshe, accused of killing wife, allegedly looked up ways to dispose of body, Helicopter crash near Ukraine kindergarten kills children, top officials, UPenn asked for info on Biden think tank donors, visitor logs, U.S. lawyer who died in Mexico was "victim of a brutal crime," family says, Matt Schlapp sued by former Herschel Walker aide alleging sexual battery, 200 millionaires say inequality is "eating the world alive". Stella Chen has been associated with one company, according to public records. The Free Encyclopedia of Washington State History. In 1986, her biggest one came true when her husband died during a seizure, making her the beneficiary of a $175,000-plus insurance payoff until authorities discovered Bruce Nickell's headache capsules had been laced with cyanide. display: block; Still, hard evidence against her was hard to come by until January 1988. So she put poisoned painkillers in stores, they say, hoping someone else would die and the tainted capsules would be discovered. Then Stella Nickell's daughter, Cindy Hamilton, began talking to police. Grant hoped to control the strategic read more, On May 8, 2010, 88-year-old actress Betty White, known for her former roles on The Golden Girls and The Mary Tyler Moore Show, becomes the oldest person to host the long-running, late-night TV sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL). He said that the companies were extra sensitive because the police had found no leads on the Tylenol murders in Illinois. The FBI refused to comment. Nearly two weeks later, she heard about Sue Snow. She became eligible in 2017 after serving 30 years of her 90-year sentence. She had taken out a total of about $76,000[11][note 2] in insurance coverage on her husband's life, with an additional payout of $100,000 if his death was accidental. But by the time of the trial, Rider says, the FBI had convinced her that her friend was the killer. Trending News Police initially focused on Snows husband Paul Webking. How Americans Became Convinced Their Halloween Candy was Poisoned. On June 11, Sue Snow, a 40-year-old bank manager, took two Excedrin capsules for an early-morning headache. [2] When her bar visits were curtailed by Bruce's sobriety,[3] she began requesting evening shifts at her security screener job at SeattleTacoma International Airport and cultivated a home aquarium as a new hobby. Gregg Olsen, whose book "Bitter Almonds" chronicles the case, says that is why the FBI zeroed in on her. Stella was dirt poor, she lived in a small trailer with her husband, grown daughter Cynthia, and grandchild; Stella's her mother lived next door. was to be made about the Nickell case to air on USA Network, but it was cancelled shortly before production began. They had thought it was drug overdose, but she was not a known user, and had taken only a couple of Extra - Strength Excedrin. Stella Nickell, then 75, had been sentenced to 90 years in prison in 1988, after she was found guilty of product tampering. Log in or sign up for Facebook to connect with friends, family and people you know. Check Writing Quality. Because of product tampering legislation passed in response to the Chicago killings, these murders became a federal case. "But more importantly, I know who didn't do it and that's Stella Nickell. She told police, and doctors realized that Bruce Nickell had also been poisoned. She had a history of abusing drugs. This dating app might be for you. Correction: Death By Cyanide Given credit for good behavior, Nickell will be eligible for release in 2040, when shes 96 years old, according to court documents. Sue Snows husband, Paul Webking, agreed to undergo a polygraph examination and passed. The police searched the family home and found an open bottle of Excedrin, a brand that Snow often used, in the kitchen cabinet. The deaths sparked a nationwide tampering scare and prompted Excedrin manufacturer Bristol-Myers Co. to recall its over-the-counter capsule medications. Sue Snow collapsed in her bathroom of her home in the Seattle, Washington, suburb of Auburn. She deserves no compassion. When detectives investigated, they found that Stella had borrowed, but never returned, a book called Human Poisoning. Stella had two of them. .component--type-recirculation .item:nth-child(5) { These included convictions for fraud and forgery and a charge of beating Cindy with a curtain rod. The revised cause of death made a difference to Stella Nickell. [2] A total of five bottles had been found to have been contaminated in the entire country, and it was regarded as suspicious that Stella would happen to have acquired two of them purely by chance. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. A few years later, though, she had a change of heart. Stella and Steven have lived together in a single family house in Philadelphia, PA. View more. Her lawyers have also petitioned, unsuccessfully, for a new trial. She showed them the bottle. A year and half after Bruce Nickell died, Stella Nickell was arrested and stood trial in federal court. [6] She went on trial in April 1988 and was found guilty of all charges on May 9, after five days of jury deliberation. Hamilton testified. And she is completely capable of murdering again at 78 yrs old. The defense agreed not to cross-examine Cindy about the reward. In inorganic cyanides, the cyanide group is present as the cyanide anion CN.This anion is extremely poisonous.Soluble salts such as sodium cyanide (NaCN) and potassium . [9] Investigators' suspicions began to turn to Stella when they discovered that she claimed that the two contaminated Excedrin bottles that she had turned over to police had been purchased at different times and different locations. But U.S. District Judge James Robart on Thursday found that Nickell, who has already twice been denied parole, doesnt qualify for compassionate relief. One June evening in 1986, he came home with a headache and four Excedrins. They also found cyanide in two bottles of Excedrin capsules Stella turned over to the police. Olsen said that Nickell told her daughter, Cindy Hamilton, about the scheme, despite their fractious relationship, and how she was inspired by the Tylenol deaths. She is a citizen of Mill Valley and the daughter of Roy Nicholls. Authorities became suspicious because she told them she had bought two bottles of Excedrin at different times, probably in different places. "It really bothers me. [2] The case was referenced in an episode of In Plain Sight titled "Kill Pill", which aired November 23, 2018 on the Investigation Discovery channel. One of the jurors had been a plaintiff in a case involving a pill baked into Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers. [2] The former was marked as overdue in library records, indicating that she had borrowed but never returned it. She told Farr that she is not sure her mother is really guilty. The Nonprescription Drug Manufacturers Assn. Noonan claimed she bought so much algae destroyer, he had to special order it just for her. Detective Mike Dunbar, who worked on the case, says she wanted insurance money. [24] Under this law, Stella Nickell's crime was prosecutable as a federal product tampering case as well as a state murder case, and she was not convicted of murder, but of product tampering that caused death. They then looked toward Nickell. "I started reading books to find out what plants I might have on the property that would be a danger to kids and pets," Stella says. But the policy would pay an additional $100,000 if he died from accidental causes. He died shortly after arriving. In these documents, there are reports about other possible suspects and mysterious fingerprints on Sue Snows bottle. Stella Maudine Stephenson was a native of Colton, Oregon. Now 27, Hamilton had been in and out of Stella's life for years. Stella Nickell grew up poor in the Pacific Northwest. read more. Explore historical records and family tree profiles about Stella Nicholls on MyHeritage, the world's family history network. Hayley Klein was transfixed by the woman who fatally poisoned her mother, Sue Snow. At 16, she gave birth to a daughter, Cynthia. I sent her to school; she told the nurse I had beat her that morning. Olsen says Hamilton and her mother had a combative relationship. Paramedics rushed her to Harborview, but she died without regaining consciousness. LISTENER DISCRETION ADVISED & Stella Nickell - The Seattle, Washington Excedrin Cyanide Murders | Listen Notes Pathologists said that her husband died of emphysema; calling it a natural death meant Nickell couldn't collect on the life-insurance policy. Bruce's insurance paid an extra $100,000 if he died by accident, including poisoning. Ramn Morales : If you're serious about being a writer, it's not going to happen here. as well as other partner offers and accept our. Dont miss out! ", If you have information regarding this case, please contact Al Farr at, The Tylenol Mafia: Marketing, Murder and Johnson & Johnson. [6] Bruce had taken them to no effect save for complaining of sudden drowsiness. The odds of her selecting two contaminated bottles by random chance were astronomical. [2] The possibility of state charges for the actual murders of Bruce and Snow continues to exist. [4], Stella met Bruce Nickell in 1974. Stella Nickell, 78, has served 34 years of her sentence and last month filed a petition arguing that her failing health and nearly spotless record should qualify her for early release. On May 8, 1864, Yankee troops arrive at Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, to find the Rebels already there. She'd heard a thump and the sound of water running over the sink. That case moved Congress to enact tough tampering laws. Estella had 4 sisters: Edith A. Donald Harvey (April 15, 1952 - March 30, 2017) was an American serial killer who claimed to have murdered 87 people, though official estimates are between 37 and 57 victims. Gradually suspicion hardened on Stella Nickell. When another tainted bottle from the same lot was found in a grocery store in nearby Kent, Bristol-Myers, the manufacturers of Excedrin, responded to the discovery with a heavily publicized recall of all Excedrin products in the Seattle area,[8] and a group of drug companies came together to offer a $300,000 reward for the capture of the person responsible. But Tom Noonan, manager of the local fish store, says she did buy algae destroyer. But, the author said, the poisoner has never cared about the attention. Other occupants: Joanna R Nicholls. Written by Gregg Olsen, the book includes interviews with Klein and Nickell's daughter, Cindy Hamilton. "The case brought the whole pharmaceutical industry to its knees," Olsen said. They also posted a $100,000 reward. She is portrayed by Zoe Colletti . FBI detectives knew that it was an unlikely coincidence that Nickell had purchased two of four known contaminated bottles purely by chance. The detectives say they simply don't know who the killer is. Stella, who was ordered to go to counseling, says her daughter was jealous of her. The clincher came when Stellas oldest daughter, Cindy Hamilton, contacted police. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! One June evening in 1986, he came home with a headache and four Excedrins. [5] Investigators were also able to verify that Stella had purchased Algae Destroyer from a local fish store; it was speculated that the algaecide had become mixed with the cyanide when Stella used the same container to crush both substances without washing it in between uses. [5][7], Initial suspicions were directed at Bristol-Myers, with Stella and Webking filing wrongful death lawsuits against the company. The son of a farmer, Truman could not afford to go to college. MMII Viacom Internet Services Inc. All Rights Reserved Bruces heavy drinking suited Stella just fine. Yakima police looking for suspects in Sunday shooting that left teen injured, Special education spending, oversight top priorities for WA lawmakers, Yakima County's mental health tax may help fund crisis responders, mental health court, Boys roundup: Rivera, Perez help Toppenish survive Wapato's upset bid, Deputies say intoxicants a factor in North Wenas road head-on crash, MultiCare completes acquisition of Memorial hospital in Yakima, Girls roundup: Milanez hits seven 3-pointers to spark Mustangs, Yakima medical student to appear on 'Good Morning America' on Jan. 20. [7] His death initially was ruled to be by natural causes, with attending physicians citing emphysema. The drift toward war with Mexico had begun a year earlier when the U.S. annexed the Republic of Texas as a read more, In 1975, John Sebastian, former member of the beloved '60s pop group the Lovin Spoonful, was asked to write and record the theme song for a brand-new ABC television show with the working title Kotter. They then looked toward Nickell. The records tended to confirm at least that part of Hamiltons story. He was able to do this during his time as a hospital orderly.His spree took place between 1970 and 1987. On June 24th, a fifth bottle of cyanide-laced pills appeared on retail shelves in South King County. They were married two years later. SEATTLE -- A federal jury convicted Stella Nickell Monday of lacing pain relief capsules with cyanide, killing her husband and a random victim, in the nation's first fatal . The eight who will also share in the reward in the Nickell case are: Thomas Noonan of Auburn, Wash., $15,000; Bonnie Anderson of Federal Way, Wash., $10,000; Denise Button of Seattle, $7,500; Sandra Scott of Auburn, $7,500; Katy Parker of Auburn, $2,500; Gerald McIntyre of Kent, Wash., $2,500; Lynn Force, of Seattle, $2,500; and Melinda Denton, also of Seattle, $2,500.
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