The Murder of Diane Newton King

For this case I watched an episode of Forensic Files. It’s season 9 episode 6, titled ‘News at 11.’

A popular news anchor and mother is killed in front of her home.

Background

Diane Newton King was born on April 4, 1956. She lived in Battlecreek, Michigan, with her two children, Marler and Kateri, and husband Brad. She was a popular news anchor at WUHQ-TV, and was known for her tough, aggressive interviews. She was also described as beautiful, and often turned heads when she walked into a room.

The Letters

Shortly before her death, Diane started receiving phone calls, messages and letters from an “obsessed fan.” The fan said he wanted to get into the industry, and wanted to meet Diane for lunch. She of course said no, but the fan didn’t take no for an answer.

Extra security was hired at the TV station. Diane’s phone calls were screened, and Brad took measures to ensure her safety at their home. They put automatic lights on their home, and were given a guard dog: a doberman pinscher.

However, the security didn’t seem to work. A letter was found in the King’s mailbox. The letter said “you should’ve gone to lunch with me,” and the words had been cut from a magazine.

Up until this moment, no one had known where Diane lived. She handed the letter over to the local police.

The Murder

On February 9, 1991, Brad came home and found Diane lying in their driveway. She had been shot twice with a .22 caliber rifle. One of the shots was to her heart, and the other to her pelvic area. The second shot suggested the killer had been kneeling close to her body.

The kids were still in the car, unharmed, but afraid. Brad called 911.

When the police arrived, they immediately discovered the location where the killer’s hideout. They had shot Diane from a barn that was next to the King property. A single shell casing was found in the barn.

A laser was later used to reenact the shooting. Diane was first shot from the barn, and then the killer shot her again to make sure she was dead.

The Investigation

Gary Lisle, and his tracking dog Travis, were brought in to try to track the killer’s scent.

Travis followed the scent from the King home through the woods, to a nearby pond. In the pond, a rifle was found stuck in the mud, as well as 7 shell casings. The gun and casings were sent in for testing. Ballistics experts tested both, and determined that the bullets couldn’t be matched to the rifle, they were too damaged.

Travis picked up the killer’s scent again, and it led them back to the King home. When the police spoke to Brad, he said he had been taking a walk out to the woods during the time of the murder. He offered to show the police his route, and it ended up being the same route that Travis had walked.

The police also discovered that Diane had been planning to take the kids to their grandmother’s home that day, but returned home when one of the kids wasn’t feeling well.

It’s Always the Husband

Brad King was a part-time college professor at Western Michigan University. He was also a former police officer.

*Brad and Diane, with one of their children*

Brad denied owning a .22 rifle, but the police found ammunition in the home that said otherwise. A cleaning lady also came forward, and said that she had seen a similar gun in a rental home that the King’s had.

The police did some more digging into the background of the King’s. It turns out that Brad was an abusive asshole. Diane had come into work with bruises, and told her co-workers that she believed Brad had been sending her the threatening letters.

There were rumors that Brad also had several affairs. One had been with a student of his, and another with a woman he had met at the college. Diane was also unhappy that Brad didn’t want to get a full time job. She was the breadwinner, and took care of their children. Diane was most likely planning on leaving Brad.

One year after Diane’s murder, Brad was arrested.

Trial and Conviction

Before Brad went to trial, a man came forward, and said he had found a second rifle in an abandoned home. The prosecution said that Brad had planted it there to throw off the case.

The prosecution believed that Brad had been the one that made the threatening letter, and broke into the King home to scare Diane. However, he made a mistake when he broke the glass. The glass had been found on the outside, suggesting that it was broken from inside.

The prosecution said Brad waited in the barn until Diane came home, but didn’t realize his kids were in the car. They said the kids threw off his plan, and he had to run into the woods to ditch the gun and bullets. He then called 911. He didn’t think that a small town police force would be able to solve the murder.

On June 6, 1993, Brad King was found guilty of premeditated first degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison, without the possibility of parole.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I can’t even imagine what those kids went through that day, and are probably still going through. They not only lost their mom, but their dad too. Brad was obviously selfish, and killed his wife because she was going to leave him. He deserves to rot in prison, and think about all the lives he ruined.

Sources

https://forensicfilesnow.com/index.php/2019/05/16/diane-king-an-anchor-silenced/comment-page-1/

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-03-29-vw-152-story.html

https://apnews.com/article/94d942ed9dec7f1d9243ea2a9b9d9591

https://www.thehorrorreport.com/booksnovels/someone-is-stalking-me

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/20528786/diane-king

https://the-line-up.com/the-murder-of-newscaster-diane-newton-king