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In 2012, 25-year-old Heidi Truman was found shot dead in her home kitchen in Orem, Utah. Her husband, Conrad Truman, was convicted in the case of his wife's murder but was later released on the grounds of faulty evidence provided.
The unfortunate event took away almost four years of Truman's life and was a solid example of how constant reviewing of evidence and cases can change how an investigation is carried out.
Conrad was released in 2017 after spending years in jail. He was convicted of first-degree murder in 2014 and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
The case will be further investigated in Dateline's true-crime series, Secrets Uncovered. Watch the chilling episode on January 24 at 8 pm ET.
The synopsis of the episode, titled, As Night Fell, reads,
"Heidy and Conrad Truman are an enviable couple with a bright future until Heidy is found shot; in the aftermath, fingers are pointed but could be aimed at an innocent person."
Trigger warning: This article contains mentions of murder and dismemberment. Discretion is advised.
Conrad Truman was convicted
The couple had a fight on the fateful night
Conrad Truman stated in a statement that the couple was drinking whiskey and watching TV on the evening she shot herself. After a point, the two had a small fight, but he said that he did not expect the matter to turn into anything as serious.
“She was in the shower. She came out of the shower, I heard a ‘pop,’ and there’s blood, it’s her blood.”
Around 11 pm, Conrad heard a popping noise and rushed to check if everything was fine. Heidi shot herself in the head and was lying in a pool of her own blood in the kitchen. Conrad immediately called the police.
The incident backfired on Conrad
Heidi's family alleged that it was Conrad who killed her. They accused Conrad of domestic violence.
Her family was so convinced that Conrad was involved in Heidi's death that when he was exonerated, her mother said that her daughter's murderer had been freed.
“The murderer of my daughter has been freed. We hold true to our commitment to advocate for domestic violence awareness in my daughter’s memory. We will continue to support the victims and tell Heidy’s story.”
Inaccurate evidence presented led to Conrad's conviction
Following a series of evidence presented, Conrad was convicted. He was found guilty of first-degree murder and was sentenced to 16 years imprisonment in 2014.
However, in another trial in 2017, he was released. It was proven that the evidence provided had faulty measurements and that it was impossible for anyone to kill Heidi given the position her body was found in.
In a statement, Utah County Prosecutor Tim Taylor said,
“We acknowledge there was a mistake in the measurements, and if there is a mistake in the measurements and the way things were done then we need to do things the right way, and so I don’t have a problem with that at all.”
Following the verdict, the medical examiner changed the manner of her death from homicide to "undetermined."
The episode will air on Dateline on January 24, at 8 pm ET.
