Karen Bodden
The 2006 murder of airline mechanic Robin Bodden gets national attention tonight when the story is aired on NBC's "Dateline."
A "Dateline" crew set up shop at the Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center in Minden during the trial of Bodden's wife, Karen who was convicted of first degree murder in January.
She has appealed the conviction and is serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole at the Florence McClure Women's Correctional Center in North Las Vegas.
Karen Bodden pleaded not guilty to the charges and never took the stand in her defense. She agreed to be interviewed by "Dateline."
Other interviews to be aired include Douglas County District Attorney Mark Jackson who prosecuted the case, Investigator Ron Elges, Bodden's attorneys James E. Wilson Jr. and Erik Johnson of Carson City, jurors and members of Rob and Karen Bodden's families.
Correspondent Keith Morrison is narrating the segment expected to air from 10-11 p.m. The program begins at 9 p.m.
"It's the kind of story that viewers find quite enthralling," Morrison said in a telephone interview Thursday. "The twists and turns it took during the course of the investigation and some of the interesting personalities involved, the character of the victim."
Morrison said he was drawn to the determination of Rob Bodden's family to see that something be done about his murder.
He said Karen Bodden, in her only interview in the case, proved to be a "good talker."
"She made a good case for herself, whether anyone wants to believe it," he said. "She made a variety of claims which might seem reasonable on the face of it, that is, until the investigation proved otherwise."
A jury of 10 women and two men deliberated 2-1Ú2 hours following a two-week trial before returning the guilty verdict. The penalty was enhanced by use of a deadly weapon. Bodden must serve 24 years before she is eligible for parole.
Karen Bodden was accused of murdering her husband in August 2006.
According to investigators' reports, she claimed her husband, an aircraft mechanic, had gone off with a pilot named "Ramos" to work for a drug cartel. She said she didn't report him missing because they were having marital problems.
Authorities believed she shot her husband at his Minden-Tahoe Airport hangar, drove his body to the desert near Johnson Lane, and dumped him in a shallow grave.
Records indicate he died Aug. 15-16, 2006, and his decomposed body was found three weeks later on Sept. 10, 2006.
Karen Bodden was accused of embezzling money from his business, General Aviation Services. She was on five years probation from a 2004 conviction for embezzling $44,000 from the Department of Motor Vehicles.
Investigators believe she murdered him because she was afraid he would turn her in for the new embezzlement.
Julie Bodden, who lives in Chatsworth, Calif., with her sister Barbara, said she had some apprehension about watching the program about her brother's murder.
"You wouldn't think that I would since I lived it, but I do," she said. "It's still so very painful to think of Rob with sorrow. We all look forward to the day when he holds a different place in our hearts, one that puts a smile on our faces and warmth in our hearts."
She said her brother was not the only victim.
"When someone decides to take a life, they not only take that person's life, they take the lives of the survivors as well. The pain and suffering is unbearable," she said.
"It's been almost two years since Rob was murdered, and we still have not begun the healing process. When will it begin? Will it begin? Will it always be the way it is? I wish I could answer that question for you, but I can't," Bodden said.