Betty Wilson

Before SMAT became one of the longest running true crime series in television history, launching a true crime phenomenon, one case started it all. A respected doctor and his alluring wife are living large in the heart of Dixie. They had money, the nice cars, the first, the jewelry. This doctor's worth a little in excess of $6 million. Until their home becomes the scene of unspeakable horror. He knows the person that hurt him is still inside. I don't know. I'm getting hurt. There was a bat next to him with blood all over it. That's called overkill. Investigators are at a loss until a tip reveals a devious plot. This informant says, I heard this guy say he was going to murder a doctor in Huntsville. He wanted $5,000 for the hit. Twin sisters get caught at the center of the investigation. There are eternal twins. They're each other's best friends. She saw her sister in a predicament that was very unpleasant. What would it take to make them SMAT? One is either walking around free and should not be. One is sitting in prison and should be free herself. You can't have those. Boulder Circle is one of Huntsville, Alabama's most exclusive neighborhoods. This particular section of town they called Pill Hill because all the doctors were building houses. The homes are virtually mansions. It's the kind of thing you expect when you're rolling through someplace like, say, Bel Air or Beverly Hills. On Friday, May 22, 1992, at 9.30pm, a rare 911 call comes in from the upscale neighborhood. 46-year-old Betty Wilson is on the line. When Betty called 911, she was completely freaked out. Something terrible had happened. Listen, this is the police department. Talk to me, okay? Were you in the house or did you walk in the house? Okay. Okay, you come home and you walk in the house and you saw this person laying on the floor who is supposed to be you. Betty says she thinks 55-year-old Jack Wilson has been attacked. She says she saw Jack lying in a pool of blood. She freaked out and ran to a neighbor's house. Did you know the person that hurt him is still inside? I don't know. I don't know. Okay. We got an ambulance and we got the police on the way. I was on second shift that night and I was actually responding. I had responded to a call in the neighborhood probably about six blocks from that house. So I responded quickly. I secured the whole house, the whole yard, everything. Seeing no sign of an attacker, officers locate Jack inside. The landing at the top of the stairwell is where Mr. Wilson was. He was laying on the back. There was blood all over the floor and then blood splattered on the wall. It's clear he's been beaten. He has a lot of wounds. Both of his arms were fractured. They're looking around for clues to exactly what happened in this space in this hallway. Was someone waiting for him in the house? It's just really not clear. These are all things that detectives are going to try to put together as they move forward with their investigation. Jack Ray Wilson was born in Chicago in 1937 and raised by adoptive parents. He grew up with poor eyesight so as an adult he focused on helping others who struggled with the same. Jack Wilson was an optimologist. Everybody loved Dr. Wilson because he was an eccentric character, funny, kind, and he often did surgeries for free. People talked nonstop about what a great doctor he was, what a kind person he was. Though he was beloved in his professional life, Jack's private life was more complicated. He married early and they had three children and they divorced. Jack Wilson's previous wife had custody of the children but they had a great relationship with their father. Quietly healing from his broken heart in 1976, Jack met an attractive young nurse named Betty. Jack and Betty met at a hospital. She has that sort of indescribable southern charm that southern ladies oftentimes have, that honey accent, that sweet expression. Betty Woods was born in 1945 in Gadsden, Alabama coming into the world alongside her twin sister Peggy. Their daddy was a detective, perhaps on the Gadsden police force, but he was in law enforcement. It seemed to be a normal family. Their fraternal twins but their each other's best friend. In high school differences began to emerge. Peggy was perceived as the debutante. She excelled, she was a homecoming queen. Betty was more average but they always appeared to get along just fine. Betty was always the quiet one and always the one in her sister's shadow. In 1964, Betty married but the relationship seemed doomed from the start. Betty married her high school sweetheart and they never really had terrible issues. They just married too young. They had children quickly and then divorced not very long after the kids were born. When Betty divorced her husband, Betty moved to Huntsville and got some odd jobs just to pay the bills. That is when Betty Wilson sort of came into her own. She shared the custody and had the kids when she could but not like a full-time mother. She was able to go on to college when she was able to move to a bigger city where people tend to accept a little bit more women who are a little bit dim-front. Free from her unhappy marriage, Betty forged a new path. Betty decided then that nursing is what she really wanted to do. Went back to nursing school, got her nursing degree. She was working in kidney dialysis at the hospital is how she met Jack Wilson. And he instantly fell for her. Back in Huntsville, Betty and Jack's romance developed at lightning speed. They literally had been on two dates before moving in together. Two years into their relationship, the respected doctor at 41 years old found himself in need of medical care. Jack was diagnosed with Crohn's disease and he had to have surgery and the surgery left him needing an ostomy bag. Betty is a caretaker by nature. She wanted to take care of him and she did take good care of him. Not long after his surgery, Betty and Jack said I do in 1978. They were married and she acquired a whole new stature and that she no longer was just a nurse. She was a doctor's wife. I thought she had a wonderful life and the man she was married to was a wonderful man. She always seemed to be really happy. Meanwhile, Peggy was also leading a wholesome married life just a few hours away from her sister in Vincent, Alabama. Peggy contributes to the community. She's a grammar school teacher. She is the wife of a preacher. She had a total of three kids. Even though they had a little different window on the world, Betty and Peggy were still as close as they ever were. Soon after Betty and Jack tied the knot, Jack's professional life started to flourish. It wasn't long before Jack made a lot of money. She quit working and became a full-time doctor's wife. They had a big house, they had the nice cars, she had the furs, they had the jewelry. But behind closed doors, Betty struggled with the expectations of being the wife of a high-profile doctor. I think in Betty's case, you know, she turned to alcohol because it offers this feeling of being disinhibited and of doing things that you normally wouldn't do. When she had to be put in social situations, Betty often drank just to get through. She couldn't stop drinking all the time, but she was drinking herself into oblivion. Jack didn't like to be around her, then at some point she realized that if she was going to maintain her relationship, she needed to stop drinking. Eight years into their marriage, Jack supported his wife and her recovery just as Betty had supported him. Betty was very, very, very involved in AA. When she quit drinking, she quit drinking. And with the alcohol gone, Betty did become Betty again. But on May 22nd, Jack and Betty's charmed life takes a tragic turn when she finds him dead in their upscale home. When the detectives get to the scene, they're seeing Jack on the floor in a pool of blood and it's hard to discern individual wounds. Investigators spot a disturbing clue near Jack's body. There's a 34-inch aluminum baseball bat near Jack's body on the floor. There was a bat next to him with blood all over it. It looked like Dr. Wilson was beaten to death with the baseball bat. The bat is taken to be examined for prints. As technicians continue to process the scene, investigators speak with neighbors. A young boy reports seeing Dr. Wilson at 4.30 p.m. about five hours before he was found dead. Dr. Wilson, come in the house and got a baseball bat. And he went outside without there driving up a sign in the yard and had a baseball bat doing it. He then goes back into the house and he has the baseball bat still in his hand. Witness statements lead investigators to believe Jack was killed between 4.30 and 9.00 p.m. Equipped with a narrowed timeframe and a potential murder weapon, police start their investigation close to home. There was not one piece of evidence by a cell to determine who was involved in this crime. Now, our job is not to go out and find somebody guilty. Our job is to go out and find the truth. Coming up, police dig into the Wilson's past. Now, I've heard all kinds of stuff around town, you know, people talk. And on earth, a twisted detail that reveals a slew of suspects. They mutually agreed to have an open marriage. After finding her husband inside their lavish Huntsville home brutally beaten to death, Betty Wilson seeks refuge at a neighbor's while police arrive on scene. She soon joined by her twin sister Peggy. Peggy rushed. As soon as she heard Jack was dead, she drives the two hours to get immediately to Betty's side. She was just traumatized by finding him the way she did. At this point, she was really not in any condition to answer questions. At the crime scene, investigators look for evidence that could support the theory of a burglary gone wrong. Everybody knew they had money. It looked like somebody was there to burglarize the home. And Dr. Wilson just happened to walk in on the burglary. His wallet is on the floor. It's open. There's no cash in it. This was a big home and it had plots of valuable stuff in it. A closer look shows that most of those valuable items are still there. There were several items left out. I mean, I've been to houses with several hundreds of houses that have been broken into and been ransacked in this house hadn't. Rooling out potential burglary, investigators must consider if it was personal. It was a very gruesome murder. He was pleasant to death and he was also stabbed multiple times. It was obviously somebody who had something against the person they killed because of the brutality. Due to the lack of evidence at the scene and the brutal nature of the attack, investigators hope the autopsy will provide some much needed insight. There were multiple blood force injuries. He was struck a great number of times over the almost the entire circumference of his head. This was clearly more than would have been necessary to cause his death. That's called overkill. The medical examiner reports that there are also two stab wounds to Jack's chest. Forensic examiner was not able to determine whether he died from the multiple blunt force trauma or from the stabs, themselves, but probably died from a combination of the two. Now overkill types of homicides are often seen in situations where there's some type of an intense emotional relationship between people who might have been emotionally attached or entangled with Dr. Wilson. While waiting to interview Betty, investigators speak with those who knew the Wilson's. They learn that while Jack was adored amongst their social circle, Betty was a constant source of gossip. She was a very fun person, outgoing personality. Now I've heard all kinds of stuff around town, you know, of affairs and stuff like that. I was never aware of any of that going on, but, you know, people talk. Betty flaunted herself. She didn't try to hide what she was. She went out, she had fun, she had affairs. I think reputation counts for a lot in a small town like that. Investigators also learn that Betty had a unique method of landing her lovers. AA was a big, big part of Betty's life, and she had been sober for five years. She was very involved, attended meetings all at the time. In those meetings, she would pick up man and entertain them. Armed with new information, detectives are ready to question Betty. Within 48 hours, she has calmed down enough for an interview. Betty was asked to come in and make a formal statement to police about what she found. Betty is still clearly distraught, but she is cooperating. Investigators start by having Betty walk them through the day of Jack's murder. Betty tells them she had spent the day preparing for an upcoming trip to New Mexico. They were leaving early the next morning, and they were both really excited about that trip. Betty had been to Parkway Place mall shopping. She bought these bright, flowery shoes. Police also saw those shoes that Betty had on. She had receipts and showed time stamps, pretty much throughout the entire day. Her alibi was iron plaid. And then as is her custom, she goes to an AA meeting later in the day, and she doesn't arrive home until about 9.30. She goes into the house when she got to the top of the stairs. This is when she sees her husband, Jack, on the floor. Knowing rumors surround the Wilson's personal life, investigators begin to question her about their relationship. Betty explains that Jack's colostomy bag put an end to the couple's sex life. That interfered with their social life, and also with their sexual relations. Betty says Jack understood that she had to have her needs met elsewhere. Betty and Jack mutually agreed to have an open marriage. It just means that you are emotionally faithful to your significant other, but you can be physically unfaithful. After detectives wrap up their interview with Betty, they start looking for any indication that Jack was angry or even aware of Betty's activities. There was no evidence that I'm aware of that. Jack Wilson was upset with Betty or he was seeking a divorce. Though there is no sign of tension, investigators are not able to confirm if Jack knew about Betty's other relationships. Knowing that there was a clear overkill aspect to Dr. Wilson's murder, it really made me question as to other people that Betty may have been romantically involved with, that might have gotten angry and perhaps set out to kill him. Despite the extensive list of Betty's flings, none raised investigators' suspicions. We didn't pursue that. I certainly didn't want to ruin some innocent person's marriage or get involved in issues that really weren't related to the murder itself. Then, three days into the investigation, Huntsville authorities learn of a disturbing tip. There was an anonymous tip before Dr. Wilson was killed. We received a call from Shelby County Sheriff's Department. They had an informant who contacted them and said there was going to be a murder here in Huntsville. This informant heard a man by the name of James White claiming that he had been hired to kill a Huntsville doctor. Ready to launch your business? Get started with the Commerce platform made for entrepreneurs. Shopify is specially designed to help you start, run and grow your business with easy customizable themes that let you build your brand, marketing tools that get your products out there. Integrated shipping solutions that actually save you time, from startups to scale-ups, online, in-person and on-the-go. Shopify is made for entrepreneurs like you. Sign up for your $1 a month trial at Shopify.com slash setup. Three days into the murder investigation of Dr. Jack Wilson, investigators have just learned of a remarkable tip. This informant contacts police and says, Hey, listen, I heard this guy say he was going to murder a doctor in Huntsville. She doesn't know anything about this potential crime except she overheard someone say this. The informant claimed James White had been hired by someone named Peggy. When the tip originally came in, authorities at the Sheriff's Department did not know what to do with it. They really can't do anything because there are lots of doctors in Huntsville, and they don't even know if this is real. But now that Jack has been killed, the tip becomes top priority. We contacted back Shelby County, and then we got the name of who they said was a suspect down there, which was Peggy. Here we are, we got the Betty Wilson up here. Her date of birth is the same as the sister in Shelby County. And that's how the connection began at that time. On certain of Peggy's involvement, investigators had south to James White's reported location, deciding to take their chances with the alleged hitman first. We found him out of a little restaurant die and told him that we need to talk to him about the homicide, and then he voluntarily interviewed him. James White was a Vietnam vet who had severe PTSD. He was also a known drug user felon. He had assorted past to say the least. For hours, James denies any involvement in the murder. Fels that were getting over. Finally, I called and asked the sheriff. I said, if you're Brian James, then I something to eat and drink. I appreciate it. I tell James I'm on, thank the Lord for my food before I eat it. I'm on a state prayer. And James told me, so Mickey, if you do that, would you please pray for me also. So I said prayer for us at the meal. And that's when he began to reveal his involvement in the case. James says he met Peggy Low one year prior. Peggy taught first grade in the town where James White lived. He was a carpenter and she needed some cabinets built. He says that he and Peggy became friends. Peggy really felt sorry for him because of what she knew her own twin sister had gone through with addiction. He would call her and tell her that he was going to kill himself and she would talk him off a ledge. He looks at Peggy as being helpful and kind and he develops this crush on her. Peggy began befriending him. Then it eased into the point that I've got a sister who's miserable. You know, husband is sick and just own and own and own. Building up James to the point of thinking, you know, what can I do for this lady? Peggy told him that Betty's husband was abusive and you know, and they wanted to have him killed. So James says he offered to kill Jack Wilson. He wanted $5,000 for the hit. He said he'd get $2,500 up front and $2,500 when he had completed the job. It was actually Peggy who hired him. He said it was Peggy who put together the whole plot. I think that twins and sisters feel a bond. And Peggy saw her sister in a predicament that was very unpleasant. And maybe she felt that the easier option was simply to get rid of the problem. Then, a month before the murder, he realized Betty was in on it too. When Betty allegedly summoned James to Gunter'sville Park to receive his down payment. Well, Betty Wilson was there for this alcoholics anonymous conference that was going on. Betty took a children's book that just happened to be in her car. And she just stuck to, I think it was $200 down in the library book. Put some money in there, it gives it to the artist, give this out to James White. James tells investigators that it wasn't the $2,500 he'd asked for up front. But he agreed to go through with the crime with the understanding that he would be paid the rest after. Then, two days before the murder was to take place, he claims he met the twins at a remote location to receive the would-be murder weapon. A 38-caliber revolver. Told us that Betty and Peggy brought it down to them. They made it in a lowly mart and down. According to James, his final meeting was with Betty just hours before the murder was to take place. He meets her at Parkway City Mall. When he meets her there, she's putting on a pair of shoes. And they were a floral type shoe. He described those shoes to the eighth degree. Investigators recognize the description. They indeed were the shoes that Betty had on the night she found her husband's body. He says that Betty picked him up in her car and that she drove him to her house. James claims he'd left the gun behind, taking along some rope and a knife instead. James decided against using the gun because he thought it would make too much noise. She says I'll be back at a certain time. So he then goes in and he quates there in the house. Dr. Wilson gets home. He walks upstairs. Dr. Wilson has the baseball bat still in his hand from driving up a sign in the yard. And when he gets to the top, fly to the stairs. Him and James white meet face to face in the doorway. James attacks him. And Dr. Wilson is somewhat trying to defend himself, but Dr. Wilson was so small. James was able to overcome him and took the baseball bat away from him. And he beat him with it. But James says he doesn't remember what happened next. He said he had something on the order of 16 to 18 beers and he's been doing drugs. James says that before Betty called 911, she made a quick trip back to pick him up. He then got into Betty's car and Betty drove him off and let him out somewhere where he had his truck. Ten hours after the interrogation began, police book James White into Huntsville City, jail. But investigators know their work is far from over. The story that he told first to police quickly changed into another. It's hard to believe anything the man says. James is a very shady character and fiction is what you would call an unreliable narrator. You cannot trust things that he says. Coming up, detective zero in unmotives. She wanted it all and she wanted it now and she didn't want it with Dr. Wilson. And the real culprit is revealed unleashing immediate frenzy. It was like a circus and everybody wanted a piece of the story. 5 days after Dr. Jack Wilson was murdered, alleged hitman James White is in custody, claiming he was hired by the victim's wife Betty and her twin sister Peggy. James began to tell us the things that happened and that was my job to go out and try to co-write. Detectives follow up, of course, on everything in James' confession. They want to find a library book where the money was supposed to be transferred to him. If that's possible, they want to find a gun if they can't even know he didn't really use it in the crime. That would lend credibility to his story, certainly, to his confession. So they go out to search his home. The gun, they did find he had hidden it in the floorboards in his home. Also, they find the weapon is registered to Betty. In James' truck, they locate another important piece of evidence. They find a library book and it's checked out to Betty. And this is the book that James said she left partial payment for me. The book, the shoes, I mean everything that he mentioned, his story just made sense. He got just dropped off to do the crime and that's what he did. There is still one question looming over the investigation. Who benefits? Detectives always follow the money. So when they start looking into Jack's financials, what they find out is that this doctor is worth a little in excess of $6 million in property and insurance. Soul beneficiary is wife, Betty. Our theory was that Betty couldn't divorce Dr. Wilson, because if it were proven that she were having affairs, she might have only received a minuscule part of his estate. She wanted it all and she wanted it now and she didn't want it with Dr. Wilson. As far as Peggy goes, investigators learn Betty was generous with her twin. Peggy's husband was a music director with the Baptist Church and that's not a hot paying job. And Peggy was a teacher. Peggy enjoyed a lavish lifestyle when she came to stay with Betty. If her sister got away with the money, that she herself would be living a high lifestyle also. On May 27, 1992, five days after Jack Wilson's murder, authorities arrest Betty and Peggy. Investigators interview Betty first. When police questioned Betty about her involvement and if she paid James White to kill her husband, she automatically instantly said absolutely not. Detectives tell Betty that her sister has turned on her, but Betty calls their bluff. One detective tells Betty your sister rolled on you and Betty's reaction was like, no. No, that's absolutely not true. They did the same thing to Peggy. Peggy had the same reaction as Betty did. Absolutely no way. A two women would not talk to us about it. They immediately wanted a lawyer. Betty and Peggy are both charged with conspiracy and capital murder. The arrests make headlines throughout the state. When they arrested Peggy and Betty, it was like a circus. Everybody wanted a piece of the story. The media kept Dr. Wilson's children out of the spotlight for obvious reasons. Betty's trial is up first, starting on February 23rd, 1993, nine months after Jack's murder. The case was moved from hospital to Tuscaloosa for Betty's trial because there had been so much adverse publicity about the two sisters. It was like a rock concert. These people came and stood in line to get in the courtroom or the entertainment bay you obit. The prosecution calls their star witness. The crux of their case was James White's detailed confession in which he implicated Betty and Peggy. The deal at the state, my name is James White, was if he testified against the two sisters that he would receive a life sentence and not receive the death penalty. James admits on the stand that his memory remains fuzzy. He had been hired by Betty, Wilson, and Peggy Low. Betty picked him up in her car. She drove him to her house. But he said with his own testimony that he was on drugs and he was drinking heavily and he doesn't remember what happened. The prosecution calls several witnesses who break down Betty's character, including her close friends. They said she was mean and she said things very hateful things in front of other people in two jacks. She would talk about the sh** back she called it after his callostomy that he had to wear a bag the rest of his life. The last one fell actually testified that he and Betty had a relationship. Betty had the reputation of being someone that was just not a very faithful wife. Betty Wilson never takes the stand in her own defense, leaving the town divided on the truth. The jury only knew what everybody said about Betty. All there was was circumstantial evidence that they put up by people who just putting witness after witness who disliked Betty. Coming up, Betty learns her fate. Some of Betty's so-called friends threw her under the bus and a surprise witness throws Peggy's case into turmoil. I could tell right from the start that something else other than a bat could cause these injuries. After six days of testimony, Betty Wilson's fate rests with the jury. It takes them ten hours to reach a verdict. The jury then deliberates for like a day or two and she's then found guilty she got life with uproar. I think that the prosecution wanted on James Confession and Betty's lifestyle. Some of Betty's so-called friends threw her under the bus. Attorneys and prosecutors, they know how to plan the emotions of jurors. They read the room. They won the hearts and minds of the jurors. Six months later, Betty's twin sister Peggy Lowe gets her day in court in Montgomery. A jury coming in knew her sister had been convicted and therefore as everyone has said if one of the misguilty they must both be guilty. But Peggy's counsel has an advantage Betty's lawyers didn't, a client with a sterling reputation. Peggy Lowe had all of her church friends sitting in that trial. She was loved by a community. Unlike Betty, Peggy takes the stand in her own defense. She came through as Mrs. Clean. She was beautiful. She was sweet. And it all came through in the trial. The defense claims James White's story is false and that he acted without the twins but with the help of an unknown accomplice. Her defense attorney says James White and some other degenerate criminal found out about this wealthy woman and inquired about his work schedule and was like, we're going to go rob him then. He surprised him. Nick beat him in the head. I don't think they meant to kill him. Chief medical examiner Chris Sparry also takes the stand. A key witness for the defense who did not appear at Betty's trial. He challenges the assumption that Jack was killed with a baseball bat. The nature of the injuries on his head were straight with slightly jagged edges and those injuries would be caused by something that is kind of narrow and thin. I could tell right from the start that something else other than a bat had caused these injuries. The defense presents a new theory based on pictures from the crime scene. Down on the ground floor there was a fireplace and you can see there was a poker that was missing that might have been used to kill him. The defense also questions whether Dr. Wilson was killed where his body was found. Where Dr. Wilson was laying on the floor there was a little bit of blood that was maybe no more than six or eight inches off of the floor onto the walls but nothing above that. I think that he was murdered somewhere else and then he was brought up to stairs and that would be difficult even for two people to do. It looked like this was the act of more than one person. The defense makes it very clear that he probably wasn't the only person at that crime scene. There were two weapons at the very least used to kill this man. The defense alleges that robbery is the real reason why James White came to be in possession of Betty Wilson's 38 caliber revolver. Did he steal the gun? Did he take the gun? When he murdered Dr. Wilson? After a week of testimony Peggy's case goes to the jury. Just two hours later the verdict is in. This time this jury returns with a verdict of not guilty. She's acquitted. The verdict causes almost as much of a stir as the crime itself. One is either walking around free and should not be or one is sitting in prison and should be free herself. You can't have both. Though the verdicts raise controversy the true tragedy is the loss of a beloved doctor. Jack Wilson was a kind and caring man not all victims are. He was generous. He treated his patients with dignity and respect no matter what their circumstances. And it's tragic all the way around that he's gone. Betty Wilson was denied two appeals for a new trial by the Alabama Supreme Court. Peggy Lowe resumed her life in Alabama. James White has never been granted parole and continues to serve his life sentence. His next hearing is in 2026. Betty Wilson remains incarcerated.