Two murders (of husbands) plus one attempted murder. Raynella
Dossett Leath (nee Large) murdered a District Attorney and got away with it.
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Wikipedia: Raynella Dossett Leath is a Knoxville, Tennessee
woman serving a life sentence at the Tennessee Prison for Women in Nashville
for the 2003 murder of her husband David Leath. Prosecutors alleged that she
shot her husband in the head, and then attempted to stage his murder as a suicide.
Dossett Leath is also a suspect in the 1992 death of her first husband, Ed
Dossett, who supposedly died from being trampled by a cattle stampede, but
prosecutors now believe that he was killed with a lethal dose of morphine.
~ Early life ~
Raynella Large was born on October 25, 1948 and raised in Oak
Ridge, Tennessee. She attended Oak Ridge High School and graduated in 1966. Raynella
went on to become a registered nurse, and she married her first husband, Ed
Dossett, the Knox County District Attorney, in 1970. The couple had three
children, and the family lived on a farm west of Knoxville, Tennessee.
~ Death of first husband ~
In August 1992, Ed Dossett, who at that time was in the late
stages on terminal cancer, was found dead in the couple's corral, allegedly
having been trampled by cattle. Despite the medical examiner's suspicions about
a double indemnity clause on Ed's life insurance policy, his death was
initially ruled to be an agricultural accident by the first medical examiner
who autopsied him. Just six months after Ed's death, Raynella married her
second husband, a retired barber, David Leath. It was not until 2006 that the
death of Ed Dossett would be re-investigated after David Leath's death.
~ Death of second husband ~
On March 13, 2003, Raynella found the body of her second
husband David Leath in their bedroom. She called 9-1-1 and reported her
husband's death as a suicide. The physical evidence suggested that three shots
were fired from a .38 caliber Colt revolver, but police argued that it was the
second shot that killed David Leath. Following his death, authorities
re-investigated the death of Ed Dossett. A new medical examiner revealed that
the morphine levels in Ed Dossett's system were "so extraordinarily high
it is unlikely that any human could function in an ambulatory manner or
continue to live." In 2006, Raynella was charged
with administering an overdose of morphine. Two years later, in 2008, she was
charged with first-degree murder in the death of David Leath.
Attempted murder charge
In 1995, after the death of her first husband, Raynella discovered
that Ed Dossett had an affair with another woman that resulted in the birth of
a child. Her late husband's mistress was in the middle of a divorce with Steve
Walker; the mistress revealed to Mr. Walker that she had an affair with Ed
Dossett and that Dossett fathered one of her children. Soon after, Raynella
lured Mr. Walker to her farm, where she allegedly opened fire on him until she
ran out of bullets. She was charged with attempted murder, but plea bargained
to a lesser charge. She served 6 years on probation and her criminal record was
expunged.
Murder trial
In May 2009, Raynella Dossett Leath went on trial for the
murder of her second husband David. She maintained that her husband's death was
a suicide. After hours of jury deliberation, there was no verdict and the judge
declared a hung jury.
Raynella's retrial began in January 2010. The prosecutor
began his opening statement by playing Raynella's 911 call, then explaining why
David's death was murder rather than suicide. The prosecutor said three shots
were fired and the second shot killed David instantly. He also told the jury
David was also drugged with a combination similar to what's used for patients
having surgery. In this trial, Raynella's defense did not argue that David's
death was in fact a homicide, but that Raynella had an alibi. After a day of
deliberation, the jury had not reached a unanimous verdict. However, on January
25, 2010, Raynella Dossett Leath was convicted of first-degree murder and was
automatically sentenced to 51 years to life in prison. Immediately following
her conviction, the charges relating to her first husband's death were dropped.
Aftermath
Following her conviction, Raynella appealed for a new trial
on the basis of Judge Richard Baumgartner's judicial misconduct for his drug
use. She cited the murder of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom case,
which resulted in all of the defendants' convictions being overturned.
Raynella's appeal was denied.
~ In popular culture ~
True crime author Diane Fanning published Her Deadly Web in
2012 about the Raynella Dossett Leath case.
Her case appeared on the Deadly Women episode, “An
Inconvenient Marriage,” Nov. 18, 2011. Snapped, “Raynella Leath,” June
17, 2012.
***
CHRONOLOGY
Oct. 25, 1948 – Raynella Large was born on and raised in Oak
Ridge, Tennessee. Became registered nurse.
Feb. 23, 1970 – marries Ed Gossett
Jul. 9, 1992 – Ed Gossett (44), Knoxville District Attorney,
dies.
1993 – married David Leath (47); barber.
May 26, 1995 – attempted murder of Steve Walker (38); opened
fire on him until she ran out of bullets. She was charged with attempted murder,
but plea bargained to a lesser charge. She served 6 years on probation and her criminal
record was expunged.
2001 – end of probation period.
Mar. 13, 2003 – David Leath (57) dies; Leath signed deed and
a will before his death. Shot in his dead; unprescribed drugs found during
autopsy.
2006 – Raynella was charged with administering an overdose
of morphine to David Leath.
Dec. 14, 2007 – Knoxville prosecutors seek court order to
exhume and examine corpse of Dossett.
2008 – she was charged with first-degree murder in the death
of David Leath.
Feb. 15, 2008 – Judge Baumgartner announced he intends to refuse
to order exhumation of Dossett because that matter has no effect on Leath murder
trial. He refused a total of three times.
May 2009 – trial for murder of Leath. Hung jury, mistrial
declared.
Jan. 2010 – Raynella's retrial began.
Jan. 25, 2010 – Raynella Dossett Leath (61) convicted of first-degree
murder, of David Leath, and was automatically sentenced to 51 years to life in
prison
May 10, 2010 – Trial for Dossett murder; Special Judge Paul
Summers waited until moments before a jury was to begin deliberations to
announce that he found evidence of Leath’s guilt too lacking to even allow
the jury to decide it. “Summers tossed out Raynella
Leath's conviction because Baumgartner had been visibly high on painkillers
during her 2010 trial.”
Mar. 2011 – Judge Baumgartner
pleads guilty to official misconduct, receives two-year diversionary sentence,
pension spared.
Sep. 2011 – Judge Baumgartner
agrees to disbarment to avoid public hearing.
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For links to other cases of woman who murdered 2 or more husbands (or paramours), see Black Widow Serial Killers.
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[1292-1/8/21]
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