A man known for being as a millionaire developer is now known for being a convicted murderer of his wife; a woman he was linked to in an alleged bankruptcy and a lawsuit, as reported by several media outlets including the Huffington Post.
B.W. was found guilty of second-degree murder by six jurors in just over 12 hours after a two week trial. He faces a life sentence in prison.
B.W.'s wife, D.W., was shot to death in September 2009, a few days just before she was supposed to give a deposition in a lawsuit.
The suit had alleged that B.W.'s business was faltering while he spent millions of dollars on mansions and expensive cars.
Kirk Kirkconnell, B.W.'s defense attorney, had alleged that D.W. was suicidal and that the incident occurred as B.W. was trying to prevent D.W. from taking her own life.
B.W. chose not to take the stand to defend himself.
Kirkconnell blamed the guilty verdict on jurors – that were seated in the same courtroom that the Casey Anthony case was heard earlier this summer – that were more than likely to convict in this case as others had failed to convict the unpopular Anthony.
Kirkconnell said, "What happened to Casey Anthony certainly makes it more difficult for any defendant, probably anywhere in the state of Florida, to get a fair trial. I think there is a widely held belief, or prejudice, based on the Casey Anthony case because people may have felt that that verdict was not the proper verdict."
Prosecutor Robert Wilkinson dashed this notion by playing a 911 recording in which B.W. said, "I just shot my wife."
In the recording, played once, B.W. is heard making that fateful statement five times to the 911 dispatcher.
Wilkinson, in a nod to the two adult daughters that the couple shared, said, "Who wants to believe that their father killed their mother? I believe (D.W.) got justice today."
The couple had been facing B.W.'s company's bankruptcy and a lawsuit – about his business practices – at the same time.
Wilkinson contended that broken wine glasses, wine stains on their patio and on B.W.'s shirt indicated some kind of fight prior to D.W.'s death.
Kirkconnell argued that B.W. needed his wife alive to prevent him from having his assets laid bare to creditors.
B.W. filed a business bankruptcy in 2010. He was also facing a lawsuit from his insurance company that accused him of spending $20 million to pay off debts, and go on a shopping spree, instead of using the money for improving subdivisions that the insurance company had issued bonds for.
The lawsuit alleged that the couple bought a nearly 9,000 square foot mansion, paid off loans totaling almost $2.5 million for two houses they owned in Georgia, bought a third house in Georgia for $750,000 and purchased several high-end motor vehicles.
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