John Baxter Hamilton. ". John Hamilton and Alliena So yes, I went and tried to move the car. Try again later. Susan Hamilton was beaten with a blunt instrument, Oklahoma County District Attorney Robert Macy said in court documents that list 39 witnesses in the case. Judge: Based upon the comments a majority of the jurors said to me in which they indicated they were very disappointed they didn't have the sentence of death as an option, I would consider yourself, you should consider yourself very lucky. Taping him on the surveillance camera. "I didnt do it, he said. The victim told her daughter in their Dennis Murphy: They're gonna accuse you of trying to cover up the scratches that Susan made defensively as you were killing her. Just, you know, just a very light-hearted conversation. Susan, as it turns out, should also have left by 9:20, because she had a 9:30 meeting at a friend's house ten minutes away. Shop Shop Discount Calls Inmate Deposits Letters and Photos Greeting Cards Postcards Magazines Books Find An Inmate Prison Directory Services They found a disturbing scene that didn't suit a moneyed neighborhood. Susan managed john's abortion clinic, working there two days a week. I think she became particularly alarmed when he didn't answer it. The doctor refuted the prosecution's case against him point by point. her husband were working on their "Someone said there is a fine line between love and hate, and that man crossed it," Lane said in his opening statement in the first-degree murder trial for Hamilton, an Oklahoma City gynecologist, obstetrician and abortionist. She had been strangled with two of his ties, and her head had been smashed so badly that parts of her brain were exposed. It was one of those moments. not kill his wife. The patient, as Susan discovered, was a stripper at a nightclub. The medical examiner had determined that Susan had been strangled with two neckties, but her fatal injuries came from being bludgeoned with a blunt object, a murder weapon never found. One says, "The shoes is what convicts him." The timeline was extremely tight for the doctor to even be considered as a suspect. felt deceived.". ). News network NBC did a Dateline episode about the case. Failed to delete memorial. In December 2001, ten months after the Valentine's Day killing of his wife, Susan, Dr. John Hamilton was being tried for her murder. Then, Holly covers the case of Dr. John Hamilton who loved his wife Susan a little too much. Prosecutors are counting on experts to testify that Susan Hamilton's blood and flesh were found in the defendant's 1996 Jaguar parked outside their home at 3056 Bush Creek Road. Two African Americans had earned medals at the 1904 Olympic games in St. Louis Joe Stadler (from Cleveland) had won a silver medal in the standing high jump and George Poage (from the . And be, even be in his right mind. Dennis Murphy: A lot of people don't get that. And go back and do another surgery. Maybe he ends up terminating that to save his marriage. Why do you do that? lied to her," Horton said. He is accused of beating and choking to death his wife, Susan, 55, at their Quail Creek home on Valentine's Day. And that's what had happened to Susan Hamilton on that Valentine's Day morning. The jurors, all women and the youngest members on the panel, wiped their eyes with tissues while Dr. Jeffrey Gofton, a forensic pathologist for the state Medical Examiner's office, testified he believes Susan Hamilton, 55, died from possibly three blows to her head with a blunt instrument. Family members linked to this person will appear here. So I answered. Dennis Murphy: So, you'd have to think that the opportunistic robber breaking in to steal some jewelry and the TV--. home at 3056 Brush Creek Road. Randy Scott: He has time to get back by the house 'cause their-- their house is very close to in between the two hospitals. You'll hear that story.". Daughter of Kamille Kareen and Louise Sibley.Mother of 2 children.Lived to age 55 years.Murder victim. Investigators have a word for rage crimes: "overkill." "His face showed jurors about the disagreement Vandalizing his home. Now this was the reasoning as prosecutors saw it: The doctor wanted the police to believe the crime had started as a robbery. I just, I wanted them to be able to get in and help. they thought the Hamiltons had And it was there they noticed something else odd. Aguirre testified However, the investigation revealed that the murderer was John Hamilton himself. The prosecution hadn't talked about this stain. Susan Hamilton's blood and skin were found on the steering wheel of the doctor's car, and a prosecution expert testified that his left shoe was spattered in a way that could only have happened while his wife was alive. You have chosen this person to be their own family member. She didn't sound like my mom.". "You could tell she was crying. Her husband was arrested that day and later charged with her murder. Then came the prosecutor, Wes Lane's, turn on cross-examination. Her husband was arrested that day and later charged with her murder. On the steering wheel and driver's side seat and door sill, crime scene investigators recovered strands of susan's hair and a piece of her flesh. Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. He says he did Susan's friend, for one, believed him, and encouraged Susan to do the same. a crowd lined up to attend the proceedings. Other little issues about maybe was it a burglary. In this case, though, the spouse had an alibi, and a good one. Dr. John Baxter Hamilton loved his wife to death, District Attorney Wes Lane told an Oklahoma County jury Thursday. Police haven't found the murder weapon or the clothes. John Hamilton: His own expert is saying he's guilty. And oh! would put together a novel theory of just what happened between husband and wife, something maybe grimly fitting for Valentine's Day. Now he would be able to tell his side of the story. Maybe Chicago gangsters get killed on St. Valentine's day. By then there'd been that neighbor's tip about problems in the Hamilton marriage. Skip to main content. Karen Reisig: I personally don't believe a physician could do-- a surgery, go commit a brutal crime of murder. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Hamilton was wearing bloodstained clothing, but no shoes or necktie, while the victim had a necktie around her neck. last telephone conversation that she and Prosecutors claim Susan Hamilton's flesh and blood found inside John Hamilton's car came from the clothes and the blunt instrument. And she gets very suspicious of it and confronts John about it. And the only explanation of that event is the wounding to Mrs. Hamilton. John Hamilton: You know, I've come to find out that blood spatter is really junk science. "My wife's bleeding all over the place," Dr. John Baxter Hamilton tells the 911 operator. You have a good marriage. Verify and try again. But I do love you. Many people have been searching the internet for his date cause. However, the dark day arrived in their family on Valentines Day 2001, when he claimed Susan was in a pool of blood on the bathroom floor. By 9:30, he was scrubbing up for the operation -- a complicated removal of a tumor. They said the police had focused on Hamilton too quickly, and not paid enough attention to the threats from antiabortion activists. As manager of this memorial you can add or update the memorial using the Edit button below. Over the next few months, though, with the help of some unique forensic evidence, the D.A. And I looked at the defense table which was over to my left. A dozen roses? He told them he had been frantically trying to save her life. He had been having an affair with a stripper and his wife became aware of it. On the other hand, his name appears in a few obituaries on the internet. And what do robbers take? Dr. John Baxter Hamilton was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole. A very nice, innocent guy was facing a nightmare. Oklahoma. Dr. Steve Jimerson -- a colleague of John's -- was best man. They claim the defendant took from the house his bloody clothes and the blunt instrument used to beat the victim after she was strangled with a man's necktie and her face repeatedly smashed into a tile floor. Mack Martin, the doctor's lead attorney, knew it would be uphill. It was about that bloody shirt taken from the doctor. "You have to with what has happened in this country.". But when the first responder -- firefighter David Bradbury-- arrived on the scene, he thought there was something odd about the way the doctor was performing chest compressions. 2023 www.oklahoman.com. link True Crime Videos A name that would shock everybody. Aguirre, also known as Nina, said she first went to the defendant for an abortion in the early 1990s, but she also saw him at his gynecology office. You'd have to believe that he committed the violent murder in that narrow window between his two surgeries. The only thing that he could think of that it was consistent with was John Hamilton when he was beating her with that blunt instrument that was driving that up inside his shirt. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried. I mean, because it was out there in view, I guess. "There is a science to blood spatters," Lane said. Dennis Murphy: You were starting to see her come around? An authoritative figure on the stand turning blood evidence from damning into benign. On Valentines Day 2001, John Hamilton murdered his wife Susan. she hadn't done before. When Susan's ex-husband learned of her murder -- and the domestic melodrama about the cell phone log -- he thought he knew right away what had happened. He told Primetime the spatters were "almost a neon sign pointing towards the wearer of this shirt being associated with the beating.". This is the shirt.". What was she like? After two hours of deliberation, the jury found him guilty of first-degree murder. They'd been suspicious earlier, back at the house when he scratched his hands against the cage in the police car. Jurors have spent two days hearing testimony and looking at photographs of the bloody crime scene and injuries the victim suffered. Her husband, John Baxter Hamilton was convicted of murder, and is serving a life sentence. Everyone who knew the couple was saying the same thing -- it just didn't make sense for the mild-mannered doctor to have killed Susan. Jurors have spent two days hearing testimony and looking at photographs of the bloody crime scene and injuries the victim suffered. Vesta Hall: She was beautiful, vivacious, intelligent, just a really neat lady. Prosecutors may finish calling their witnesses today. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Good amount of blood. Randy Scott: I think the biggest part for us was trying to figure out how he could get there, spend any time there, and get back to commit the second surgery. We changed it to, instead, that-- Valentine's Day is a day to celebrate love. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced. Did it ever. (Oklahoma Department of Corrections) Dr. John Hamilton placed the. You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below. And the seemingly inseparable couple became even more so after they married. an affair when he called her before the slaying. In 1987, John Hamilton married Susan, and his wife began working part-time at John's clinic. John Hamilton: I wanted EMT to be able to get in. for immediate release contact: diane denton december 16, 2004 615.741.3111 (office) 615.708.9384 (cell) disciplinary action report The defense says the scratches could have been made by a number of objects besides fingernails. Susan.". Ross Gardner: We took a one-to-one image of Mrs. Hamilton's head -- the injury, the laceration. Dick Horton: She calls us and says, "I found the jewelry in her underwear.". AGE 40s John Hamilton Norman, OK View Full Report Used To Live In Relatives The national media outlets refused to identify Hamilton as an abortionist, referring to him only as a local obstetrician. And you could overlay the pattern transfer right on top of the wound, and you see an immediate -- I mean, they match up. Hamilton is serving a life sentence without possibility of parole at the state penitentiary in McAlester. When asked if there shouldn't have been a blood trail in the house if the defense theory is true, Spruill said: "I would expect that. Which means if John Hamilton didn't do it, you'd have to believe whoever did arrived right as he was leaving, or had been waiting inside all along. John Hamilton, an obstetrician-gynecologist in Oklahoma City before murdering his wife in 2001, was a well-known obstetrician-gynecologist. "There are all kinds of things still going on. Steve Jimerson: Susan's children, when it first happened, were calling me, trying to find if I had knew of any reason somebody or some person might have been there. And that wasn't all. They do on Perry Mason, but they don't in the real world.". John Hamilton: Right. One blow crushed her skull, Gofton said. It started out negative. Oklahoma City police Sgt. It was a violent scene. Link in bio. Alliena Aguirre, a topless dancer for eight years, testified she had performed table dances at two Oklahoma City clubs for the doctor. Dick Horton: I don't think there was any question she wore the pants. In that card, Susan had written a message alluding to the couple's flare-up just days before: Susan ballistic over suspicions that he was having a fling with a stripper. A judge earlier ruled there was probable cause to detain Hamilton pending formal charges being filed. John Hamilton: Please, please, send police, please send an ambulance, please. Make sure that the file is a photo. Use the links under See more to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc. Instead they uncover a horrific crime scene, with two badly mutilated bodies. He had been up at dawn for a 7 am surgery at an outpatient clinic. Her husband was arrested that day and later charged with her murder. day. Dennis Murphy: So these things that you say are kind of like out of focus- moving the car, there was the other thing -- the business about moving her jewelry, hiding it in her drawer? A prominent doctor's wife is murdered on Valentine's Day. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. John Hamilton: I still believed that the system would work. By that afternoon, police had taken the doctor down to the station. problems. But he never had a chance to do that -- or to tell the cops that the killer had gotten the jewels -- that's because he was put in the back of the police car and never got back inside the house again. John frantically called 911. ", Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. The judge ruled that he would not allow any testimony about threats the abortion doctor and his wife may have received. "She was taken down almost immediately and spun onto her face, Spruill said. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. I do not think that John's havin' an affair. Teresa Sterling: It was violent. Wes Lane: We could tell that-- that the blood had been moved around. And, but it also said something to the effect how much she loved me and our time together. Susan Hamilton Murdered 2001 Murdered , Bludgeoned , Strangled On the morning of Feb. 14, 2001, Dr. John Hamilton phoned 911 requesting urgent help for his wife. On this day, Valentine's Day, in 2001, abortionist John Baxter Hamilton bludgeoned his wife, Susan, to death in their Oklahoma home. (Oklahoma Department of Corrections) Dr. John Hamilton placed the initial 911 call after his wife was strangled and beaten to death in Oklahoma on Valentine's Day 2001. brain to figure that out," Horton testified. He was talking on the phone. Western leaders say the nation lacks credibility, Rishi Sunak leads minutes silence for Ukraine as Boris Johnson lights candle at poignant service, CVS eyes European expansion as vet groups profits boom. And there wasn't an objection. What was that all about? Two weeks later he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. He was born on April 23, 1950 in Phenix City, Alabama. This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates. I was scared. It doesn't always happen that way. without her knowledge. And while he may have stepped over his boundaries professionally, he said he never had an affair with her. Khi gp Susan vo nm 1985, c hai ly hn v c 4 a con . Wes Lane: Yeah, I mean, I talked to everybody from the restaurant waitress that would wait on them on Saturday mornings, and she was agasp that we could have charged John Hamilton, because she would see them at breakfast together all lovey dovey, and so, yes, there was just a vast amount of opposition and grand skepticism. John Hamilton, 53, ordered an expensive arrangement of red orchids for his wife, but he never got the chance to give them to her. I mean, he fawned over her a lot. Melanie Martinez is a talented singer. That high society doctor was Dr. John Hamilton -- an OB/GYN who in addition to his regular practice, ran an abortion clinic -- a role that in conservative Oklahoma, would bring him some unwelcome notoriety. Prosecutors claim the defendant had fingernail scratches on one of his shoulders when he was arrested. There's no tracks that ran out through the creek bed and behind. And so, the motive was love lost. Many still believe he is innocent, and he. Wes Lane, the prosecutor, was surprised to find he had an unpopular case on his hands. The procedure came off without a hitch, and later none of the other doctors reported anything at all unusual in his behavior. John Hamilton: I talked to the surgery nurse and she said, "The surgery before yours started 30 minutes late.". Soon after their arrival, investigators started questioning Dr. John Hamilton himself. But suspicion began to point closer to home. I mean, I knew Susan was dead. she tried to act strong at first. There was an error deleting this problem. Blood that then transferred from his hands and clothes to the car. It looked like the start of an attempted -- and then abandoned -- clean-up. Are you sure that you want to remove this flower? The prosecutor told the jury he envisioned the murder this way: the doctor coming back mid-morning after his first surgery, trying to patch things up with his wife who, majorly, wasn't buying it. If convicted of first-degree murder, Hamilton, 53, could be sentenced to life in prison with or without the possibility of parole. And we knew we had enough dots that if we get it to lay out in an understandable manner, we knew the jury would be hard pressed not to convict him. Her naked body was discovered by her husband, John. "It tells a story. Lane said a bloody imprint of what is believed to be the blunt instrument was discovered on the defendant's shirt. A system error has occurred. We're going to vigorously, steadfastly and as carefully and conscientiously as possible defend this case to the very end. Wes Lane: They're not gonna do that. By 10:45, he was on his way home again, which is when he says he discovered Susan in a pool of blood. All rights reserved. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Investigators though, weren't ruling anything out -- especially not after finding a Valentine's Day card, from her to him, opened that day. What he hoped to show the skeptics through trial was that yes, the doctor was indeed a man who loved his wife -- loved her maybe too much. And both John and Susan had received threatening phone calls that week. loyal patients, former employees and fellow physicians, all standing behind the doctor. He did not think it could have come from giving CPR. "Someone said there is a fine line between love and hate, and that man crossed it," Lane said in his opening statement in the first-degree murder trial for Hamilton, an Oklahoma City gynecologist, obstetrician and abortionist. Hamilton (5 Jan 1946-14 Feb 2001), Find a Grave Memorial ID 80157405, citing Chapel Hill Memorial Gardens Cemetery, Oklahoma City . He'd even mentored the blood expert used by the prosecution. Horton said her mother got their talk was somewhat unusual because it was something The shoes were found next to Susan's body -- john said they fell off his feet as he was attempting to revive her. Pictures of his injuries have been shown to the jury. The doctor and his wife built an envious lifestyle for themselves. The prosecutor was well aware of the hurdles he faced, not the least of which: the lack of motive. Testimony is expected to continue this morning before District Judge Ray Elliott. Martin described the victim as being jealous of her husband's time away from her. doctors. Susan Johnston: I said, "Susan, I don't think it's true. Horton: Anybody that you ask, nobody that I know that knew John Hamilton would say that he had the capability of doing it. And-- my children started, "Well, I'll never celebrate it again." Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. It was never on anyone that, there were calls that were made to Susan that scared her that weren't brought out. Tom Bevel: I was hired-- either the-- the next day, or within two days at least-- of-- of the actual crime-- by the defense. The state of Oklahoma would charge Dr. John Hamilton with just loving his wife to death. His wife, Susan, worked twice a week at the abortion clinic. Lane backed up his theory with physical evidence. There were things done that were dangerous. But eventually, she said, "Yes, I'll go.". Hamilton will have a closed-circuit arraignment before a judge on Friday. No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. Sorry! Resend Activation Email. would never do that,'" Horton Dr. John Baxter Hamilton is on trial for killing his wife. So he runs by that house. Steve Jimerson: I was afraid for his safety. All photos appear on this tab and here you can update the sort order of photos on memorials you manage. "John said she had said something about divorce," Coffey said. He and his wife, Susan, had met in 1985 at a friend's birthday party. Susan Hamilton died of blunt force trauma to the head and ligature strangulation or strangulation brought on by something being tied or pulled tightly around her neck, according to the medical examiner's preliminary report. Please, hurry. February 14th, 2001, would have been their fifteenth Valentine's Day together. Foreman: We, the jury and panel, sworn in the above-entitled cause, do upon our oath sign as follows. Aguirre, the topless dancer, If anything, threats against the clinic, only seemed to bring the Hamiltons closer together. John Hamilton in Oklahoma We found 15 records for John Hamilton in Norman, Tulsa and 9 other cities in Oklahoma. It did in this case, though. John Hamilton: My wife's, my wife, my wife I think my wife is dead. Mack Martin: The focus was always on John. "I don't think it took very long at all. Lane looked for signs of spousal abuse in the past, but couldn't find anything substantive. Dennis Murphy: You thought that the second operation was gonna be backed up? Watching. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. We all know red is for the ribbon on the box of chocolate, not for the pool of blood in the master bath. Susan Johnston: She was upset and angry with John. The killer, careful not to step in the blood, changed into clean clothes and concealed the bloody clothes in a plastic bag before carrying them out of the house, Spruill said. Hamilton, 62, was an Oklahoma City obstetrician, gynecologist and abortionist. After all -- nothing can bring back the beautiful, headstrong, woman they all loved. It had all of the appeal of a romance novel gone bad. But Bevel and prosecutors have denied those allegations. "He was just obsessed with her," District Attorney Wes Lane later told Primetime. The couple had exotic vacations and a beautiful house, and after 14 years of marriage, friends and family say they were inseparable, and very much in love. pic.twitter.com/JX4vEnAq2O, Crimes with Christine (@CrimeswChris) March 25, 2021. And for that, they hired a blood stain expert Named Ross Gardner. The doctor's behavior in the minutes after finding Susan dead seemed "off.". Found more than one record for entered Email, You need to confirm this account before you can sign in. Today, John Hamilton resides in a maximum security prison, behind the walls where Valentine's Day has little meaning at all. "He (Hamilton) was really clinging to the defense lines that the blood result was not the way it was interpreted, Dennis Murphy, a "Dateline NBC reporter, told The Oklahoman on Wednesday. asked him to move out of their Are you sure that you want to delete this photo? But his argument wouldn't be enough. We don't have a weapon. Time for a new episode! John, the good doctor, was simply trying to counsel her. Furthermore, he has previously requested a retrial, which has been denied each time. Hamilton took the stand to testify in his own defense. That statement was out of character for As the last witness in the trial, he'd refuted a lot of the prosecution's findings, and bolstered his client's case. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. And you know, start her day off right before she got busy with her meeting. Now, courtoom lawyers like to talk about Perry Mason moments when a trial is electrified by unexpected testimony, but it hardly ever happens. Dennis Murphy: Because then you know the history of the phone calls. Prosecutors said Hamilton changed clothes after killing his wife in the master bathroom. Susan Hamilton was angry and stayed at Coffey's house that night, Coffey said. There was a problem getting your location. And here's the thing about that timeline: John had to have left the house by 9:20 to make it back to the hospital by 9:30, when he was seen scrubbing up for surgery. And we're thinkin' that maybe he was having an affair. Over the next few hours, investigators would explore those theories and more, as they tried to understand just what had happened to Susan Hamilton that Valentine's Day morning. On Feb. 14, 2001, he phoned 911 to report finding his wife in the master bathroom of their Quail Creek home. Right away, detectives started asking: Who could be responsible? without bail since Feb. 14. Tom Bevel: I expected an objection. Had he hurt himself? Before Susan Hamilton died, Coffey said, the victim had changed her mind and thought that her husband was not having an affair. Had there been an illicit relationship with this stripper, topless dancer? Dennis Murphy: Until that Valentine Day morning, there was no-- no anger issues, no histories of this guy hit-- hittin' the switch and flipping out, and-. He was acting bizarre. Hamilton maintained his innocence throughout his trial, which may have turned on dramatic testimony from the final witness in the case. On Valentine's Day morning, Susan Hamilton had been strangled and brutally beaten in her bathroom. His supporters, on the other hand, continue to believe he is innocent to this day. Something he'd noted and what would later be regarded as the atomic bomb of the trial of Dr. John Hamilton. he was upset. Two neckties were knotted about her throat. Learn more about managing a memorial . "She loved to talk to John," trips. We actually believe that-- that-- John Hamilton was trying to clean things up before he got paged. On Feb. 8, after the victim learned of the cell phone calls, the defendant wrote Aguirre in a letter saying he could no longer be her doctor, she said.