On this day, July 16, in 1979, a trial began for an Army doctor accused of murdering his pregnant wife and two daughters nearly 10 years earlier.
In 1970, Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald called emergency crews at Fort Bragg, N.C., to report that he and his family had been attacked by hippies. His wife, Colette, and their two children, ages 5 and 2, had been stabbed to death. “Pig” had been scrawled across a headboard in fresh blood. MacDonald had suffered stab wounds himself.
Investigators doubted his story, but initially didn’t have enough evidence to prove that he was the killer. Five years after the slayings, a grand jury indicted MacDonald for the deaths. Because of delays, his trial did not begin for four more years. The jury heard an audiotape of MacDonald coolly talking about the murders. The jury also heard the investigators confront MacDonald about his affairs, to which he responded, “You guys are more thorough than I thought.”
He was convicted for all three deaths. MacDonald’s case has been appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court more than any other murder.
MacDonald, now 65, is housed at a federal prison in Cumberland, Md. He continues to maintain his innocence. — Scott McCabe
