Photo: Courtesy Brophy Family
Romance novelist Nancy Crampton Brophy, 71, –– who was on trial for fatally shooting her husband Dan Brophy in June 2018 –– was found guilty early Wednesday morning, perKGW.
“[I’m] just very, very thankful that everything has turned out the way it has,” said the victim’s mother, Karen Brophy, after the verdict, the outlet reported. “It’s been a long three and a half years.”
Dan’s son from a previous marriage, Nathaniel Stillwater, added according to the outlet, “We’ve all been waiting three and a half, almost four years now to start grieving this loss. To finally have some closure has been very important and meaningful for our family, and feel that we can start to move on and remember my father always, but begin that process of starting to grieve.”
During the seven-week proceedings, prosecutors said Nancy could have potentially gaineda generous amountof Dan’s insurance money upon his death. They called in witnesses who claimed the pair were suffering financial hardships when Dan was killed in the Oregon Culinary Institute. There, he served as a chef and teacher.
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Nancy’s van was also spotted near the institute on traffic cameras the day of the murder, prosecutors pointed out, noting in closing arguments that the author lied about where she was on the fateful morning.
As for the weapon used, prosecutors argued Nancy looked up and bought a “ghost gun” kit online before purchasing a Glock 17 handgun while at the Portland Gun Expo. She later bought a separate slide and barrel that could fit the weapon, prosecutors said, according to KGW. Though the slide and barrel Nancy bought were not used in the murder, prosecutors said during the trial that police were never able to find the extra slide and barrel to match them with the bullets used.
One of Nancy’s previous cellmates, Andrea Jacobs, testified that Nancy told her Dan was shot two times to the heart, and that Nancy “showed me the distance,” showing the length with her arms and adding, “it was about this far.”
Meanwhile, Nancy’s lawyers challenged the evidence as circumstantial and insisted Nancy would never kill her husband because of their endless love for one another. Her niece testified that she saw the couple’s romance for herself and “personally observed” Nancy “grieving, crying, sobbing, breaking down many times,” after Dan’s death.
Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office
Once on the stand, Nancy opened up about her late husband, telling the jury, “It’s like you’ve lost an arm. Like you’re just not as good as you were when you’re with him. You were the best you could be when you were together with him. Now it’s like, yeah, I function, but there’s something missing.”
She admitted she and Dan had money issues, but said they were going to downsize their home and that they only bought life insurance policies for their retirement plan. She noted that she looked into ghost guns as inspiration for a future novel.
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Written in 2011, Nancy explained the perfect way to kill one’s husband in a tongue-in-cheek essay.
Nancy wrote, “Divorce is expensive, and do you really want to split your possessions?”
She added, “Or if you married for money, aren’t you entitled to all of it? The drawback is the police aren’t stupid. They are looking at you first. So you have to be organized, ruthless and very clever.”
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On the morning of his death,Danwas filling buckets of ice and water at a sink, preparing for his day as an instructor at the Oregon Culinary Institute. Then, someone came into the kitchen and shot him in the back.
His death shocked and saddenedthe Oregon culinary world where Dan, a chef who had particular expertise in mushrooms, was well-known.
“She was the love of his life,” Dan’s former student Travis Richartz," told PEOPLE in 2018.
“He had a closet full of different hats and jackets, and wacky cow outfits that you would velcro the parts of the cow onto,” recalls Richartz. “He was just that guy that you showed up to his class, kinda never knowing what to expect. He was always a guy to keep you on your toes.”
Nancy’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 13,KATUreports.
source: people.com
