In the Dateline episode “The Bathtub Mystery,” Dennis Murphy investigates the 2008 murder of 24-year-old dental hygienist Sarah Steward Widmer of Hamilton Township, Ohio. Her husband of four months Ryan Widmer was accused of drowning Sarah in their bathtub. (When he called 911 he said she must have fallen asleep in the tub.) Ryan Widmer was initially convicted of killing his wife but the verdict was overturned due to juror misconduct. His second trial in 2010 ended in a hung jury. The jury of his third trial in 2011 found him guilty and Widmer was sentenced to 15 years to life.
When Murphy interviewed Ryan Widmer’s mother Jill Widmer, who paid for his legal fees, she said: “If I have to live on the street in a cardboard box at the end of this, I’m gonna do whatever it takes to get my son out of this.” Unfortunately, in July 2013, Jill Widmer, 55, was found dead in her Mason, Ohio home. Her sister Jackie Cromin said Jill was not able to attend any of the third trial because, “She is very sick. This has ruined her.” In February 2017, Ryan Widmer was denied a fourth trial by a federal court. Dateline airs Saturdays at 7pm on NBC.
