Jill Blackstone
Snapped: Women Who Murder
The episode investigates the suspicious death of Wendy Blackstone, which initially appeared to be a failed suicide pact with her sister, Jil
Key takeaways
- Jill Blackstone was $1.4 million in debt, including significant veterinary bills.
- FBI forensic analysis of Jill's computer revealed searches for 'suicide by gun', 'carbon monoxide', and 'poisoning'.
Main topics
- Carbon monoxide poisoning investigation
- Financial motive and bankruptcy
Notable quotes
The notes talk about what you're going are to find... This is what you're supposed to do with the bodies.
Conclusion
The case highlights how forensic digital evidence and financial record
Transcript preview
Speaker 1 (0:04) A Los Angeles producer survives a harrowing brush with death. When the fire department assessed her, she thought she had had a stroke. Speaker 3 (0:12) Last thing I remember is weeping out from the grass. Speaker 1 (0:16) But when police find a dead body in her garage, the case takes an unexpected turn. Speaker 2 (0:24) She was laying on her side with a dead Speaker 1 (0:30) dog behind her. As they search for the truth, detectives unravel a tightly wound mystery. Speaker 1 (0:39) I observed Speaker 2 (0:39) two trash cans. There were notes that were attached to the trash cans. Speaker 8 (0:45) The notes talk about what you're going to find. You're going to find two females. This is what you're supposed to do with the bodies. Speaker 1 (0:55) Possibly we had two sisters, each of whom wanted to die. The investigation reveals evidence of a more sinister plot. Speaker 8 (1:04) There was no indication whatsoever that she wanted to end her life. Speaker 1 (1:10) So was this a tragedy or an expertly crafted murder? Did she Speaker 7 (1:17) accidentally survive or did she produce this scene and plan to survive the whole time? I kept telling Speaker 5 (1:25) the detective that there's no way that she did this. Speaker 3 (1:28) I get where you're seeing this from. All I can say is I'm the best person I know. Speaker 1 (1:47) It's March 2015 in Studio City, California, an L.A. suburb that's home to some of the world's best-known TV and film lots. This quiet enclave of L.A. is disrupted midday when 911 hears from a concerned woman who just received a strange call from a friend. Speaker 2 (2:08) The Los Angeles Police Department received the 911 call from Tracy. She's concerned about a friend of hers who lives Speaker 6 (2:17) in Studio City. She may have had a stroke. She doesn't know what's going on, but she's spoken to the woman in peril and paramedics need to get to that address. Speaker 2 (2:30) The fire department arrived and they went through the front door. And when they went to the front door, they found Jill Blackstone in a back bedroom. Speaker 1 (2:43) The woman, Jill Blackstone, is conscious but disoriented. Speaker 1 (2:50) She had stated she had crawled Speaker 2 (2:51) from the front yard to her bedroom. When the fire department assessed her, I believe her speech was a little slurred and she was talking slowly. Tracy said she thought she had had a stroke, but they did not find any evidence of a stroke. She really didn't give a clear explanation as to why. She didn't call 911 herself. Speaker 1 (3:18) Though the woman's condition is not as dire as originally feared, those on scene sense that she is not alone. Speaker 6 (3:27) One of the paramedics notices that there's lots of dog bowls and lots of dog toys, food bowls. And so he inquires. She tells them that they have three dogs. Those dogs may be in the garage with her younger sister, Wendy Blackstone. Speaker 2 (3:51) One paramedic stays with Jill Blackstone as the other paramedic walks over to a detached garage. It's completely dark. His eyes start to burn. He knows by just his experience that the burning of his eyes is probably some form of gas or something burnt inside the actual garage. Speaker 6 (4:11) So he opens the main garage door. Speaker 1 (4:16) The light reveals a tragic scene. Speaker 2 (4:21) He observed Wendy Blackstone to be laying on her side. He went and checked for vitals and found that she was deceased. Speaker 1 (4:30) As responders take in the scene, they discover charcoal smoldering in a grill and the three family dogs. Speaker 2 (4:42) One dog was dead next to Wendy Blackstone's body. Two dogs were still in movement. To see a dog deceased and dead like that and next to a body and seeing the way that Wendy Blackstone was, I think it was very difficult to see that. Speaker 1 (5:05) Detectives are called to the scene as first responders tend to Jill and the surviving dogs. Speaker 2 (5:11) Tracy had gotten there right when they were taking Jill Blackstone out on a gurney to the ambulance. We didn't interview Jill at that time. Animal Reg came out and took those dogs to a hospital. Speaker 4 (5:27) One of the dogs had sort of arc-shaped burns on his nose that were consistent with him trying to knock over the Weber girl, and it was knocked over. Speaker 1 (5:36) As detectives assess the scene for any signs that could have led to their deaths, they identify some troubling notes. Speaker 8 (5:45) I remember entering the garage, seeing Wendy on the ground and dog next to her. The barbecue still on and the big culprit could be carbon monoxide. And then we see these notes. Speaker 2 (6:04) in front of a detached garage. There were notes that were attached to the trash cans. Speaker 8 (6:12) The notes talk about what you're going to find inside the garage. You're going to find two females that do not want to be resuscitated. This is what you're supposed to do with the bodies. This is what you're supposed to do with the dogs. Speaker 2 (6:30) It seems like they wanted to both commit suicide, but someone's alive and someone's now dead. When you go to a scene like this, you're trying to interpret exactly what happened. Speaker 1 (6:46) Wendy Blackstone was born on August 2nd, 1965 in Bayonne, New Jersey. There were three sisters. There was Speaker 7 (6:55) Wendy, Lisa, and Jill. And Jill was the oldest, then Lisa, and then Wendy was the baby. Speaker 1 (7:02) In her early teenage years, Wendy found herself having trouble with the basics of life. Speaker 5 (7:09) Wendy did mention having problems at her bat mitzvah. She mentioned it was very dark and she was very uncomfortable at the celebration. That may have been like the clue that got things rolling. Speaker 5 (7:25) Wendy was diagnosed by the same doctor as I was. Wendy had something called Usher syndrome, which combines retinitis pigmentosa with hearing loss. Speaker 2 (7:39) Retinitis pigmentosa is a degenerative eye disease that continues to degenerate all the way through life to the point where a person will become blind. Speaker 5 (7:52) I had the idea that possibly we could make a site for RP and Usher people to be email pen pals. I met Wendy online in the 90s. We mostly didn't talk about vision problems. We talked about life. Wendy was a nice person who did her best with what was handed to her. Very kind person. Speaker 6 (8:18) Wendy was determined not to be a do-nothing person. She went to a private school, and then she also went to college and got her degree. Speaker 7 (8:30) Jill looked out for Wendy. Wendy was the baby sister, and Jill was there pretty much every step of the way helping her. Speaker 1 (8:40) Wendy worked after college while living at home, before eventually receiving Social Security payments when her vision and hearing declined. Speaker 1 (8:50) Meanwhile, older sister Jill Speaker 6 (8:52) had gotten her master's degree in communications, got a job as an executive assistant at a TV station, and really built quite the career for herself. Speaker 7 (9:08) She comes out to Los Angeles and she's doing reality shows. She got a job at Jerry Springer. And several years later, she became an executive producer for Divorce Court. Speaker 3 (9:23) At one point, we produced the same talk show, just at different times. So we both produced the Sally Jesse Raphael show. Jill, I think, had the reputation of having high expectations. She was successful. Speaker 6 (9:35) At one point in my career, I was managing editor and senior correspondent for a TV show called Crime Watch Daily. I remember one day, Jill came in and sitting right next to me. This was a daily, like, news magazine show where you had to Speaker 7 (9:52) pound out scripts. She was making a lot of money, and she had the big house in the Hollywood Hills, plenty of bedrooms for the whole family when they come out. Everything was great. Speaker 3 (10:03) When we were producing talk shows together, Wendy would visit Jill in L.A., so she'd fly from New Jersey to L.A. on her own. Speaker 5 (10:11) Wendy would visit Jill in California frequently, and she liked it. It was bright and sunny and warm. Speaker 3 (10:21) Jill took it upon herself to say, hey, Wendy, come live with me. Speaker 6 (10:25) Jill has no kids and she's single. For Wendy, this was paradise. It was great. And Jill thought, well, why not? You know, come stay here. I've got plenty of space. And that's what Wendy did. Speaker 3 (10:40) Wendy,